Written in the Stars
by KatieK101
Summary: Many seasons ago, the Dark Forest won the Great Battle. The Clans are broken. StarClan is dead. Now it's up to three bitter apprentices to work together to restore balance before the Clans are lost forever. / In which Flamepaw, Sleetpaw, and Brightpaw must learn that sometimes, you belong to something much bigger than yourself.
1. So the Dark Forest won, Right

_"It's a "what-if the DF won" story. I love the idea of that concept, but the only ones I can find are Hunger Games/Warriors crossovers, or something else that just can't keep my fleeting attention. But I have this new story idea and... I love it." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 4, 2015._

* * *

 **Prologue**

* * *

So the Dark Forest won, right.

Yeah, I know, what a shock.

Because good always triumphs over evil and the conquering heroes are granted immortality, and queens tell their kits stories about their bravery for generations, and everyone lives happily ever after. That's how the story is supposed to go.

Plot twist! This story is going to be a just a _little bit_ different.

But before I get too ahead of myself and confuse you, I'll go back and start from the very beginning; back when the Clans were fighting oh-so valiantly against the Dark Forest, and everything looked like it was leaning in our favor. We were holding our own pretty well. Victory seemed to be just on the horizon.

Then Tigerstar killed Firestar, and everything fell apart.

Firestar was a _legend_. Everyone knew his story, how he was the first kittypet to ever join the Clans, how he'd become leader of ThunderClan, and so on. In the eyes of his Clanmates he was immortal; he couldn't be killed. So when Tigerstar broke his neck it threw the Clans into shock. They just… stopped fighting; couldn't believe what had happened. By the time that twilight rolled around, the news had spread across the lake and the Dark Forest was victorious.

Immediately after their victory, they set off to make sure that the Clans understood who was in control now. They slaughtered cats in every Clan, no matter if they were queens or kits or elders. All four Clan leaders were killed that night, and so were their deputies. The Dark Forest chose who would lead the Clans (they couldn't risk anyone _too_ strong, y'know?). They also killed the previous medicine cats because of their connection to StarClan, but more on _that_ in a moment.

So yeah, the Dark Forest won the battle and began their tyranny. I don't really know how it used to be when they first took over, but from what I know there was a lot of blood. Just because they won the battle didn't mean the war was over, and like when anything changes, there were a lot of rebels. The Dark Forest had their paws full trying to establish complete control and weeding out any threats.

A lot of cats were tortured or beaten and bruised.

A lot more were murdered.

And then there was the issue with _StarClan_. That's a bit harder to explain but from what I've overheard, the Dark Forest completely banned the topic of their better half. You were guaranteed a beating for even breathing the word 'StarClan', and sometimes they went so far as to kill over it. I think it's because StarClan were kept alive by their memories; as long as there were cats to think about their warrior ancestors, they existed. _Sooo_ if no one ever thought about StarClan, then they would just cease to ever exist.

That was exactly what happened. After seasons of death and blood and torture, StarClan became an abstract thought; a myth. Maybe at one point it had been real, but now StarClan is gone. Nowadays, no one knows where cats go when they die.

So... _yeah_. It wasn't exactly a good time.

That went on for seasons. Eventually the Clans just accepted the fact that StarClan was gone and this was their new way of life, and tried to do the best with what they could. We still had the same Clan structure and routines; patrols were still sorted, kits were still made into apprentices, and Gatherings were still held. The Dark Forest checked in every few days to make sure we were behaving, and sometimes they killed a cat to keep us in line, but they even grew accustomed to that. Life was scary and dark, but oh well. There was nothing they could do about it.

Until two warriors decided they'd had enough.

They were a tom and she-cat from ThunderClan, and they'd just found out that they were expecting kits. How could they bring kits into such a dark, uncertain world? It was a question that haunted them for days, and then one day they realized their answer: they couldn't.

So they decided to rebel against the Dark Forest. They rallied their Clanmates in ThunderClan, and then found like-minds in ShadowClan. RiverClan was harder to sway but eventually they too agreed to join. WindClan, skittish like the rabbits they chased, refused to join the allegiance. After three of the four Clans had come together they carefully planned a surprise attack. The planning lasted for a few moons to avoid suspecian from their Dark Forest overlords.

It was decided that the ThunderClan tom and she-cat would lead the charge. However, the morning of the attack and things were already falling apart: the she-cat went into early labor. She insisted that her mate go without her, and when they defeated the Dark Forest he would have a new family to return to.

It didn't quite work out that way.

The Dark Forest had been expecting them.

No one really knows how, but we suspect that they had a spy, or they tortured the information out of someone. The details don't really matter. What's important to the story is that they didn't appreciate the Clans plotting against them, so when the tom led the attack into their camp they were already prepared. Dark Forest warriors outnumbered the ones that had followed the rebellion, and they were on their own territory; the element of surprise had been the Clans' only advantage on a battlefield where the enemy had every other one. In the end, the battle didn't even last all evening. They never stood a chance.

The real action took place that night.

Dark Forest patrols escorted the surviving warriors to their Clans, and then they were forced to pay for their treachery. Despite WindClan refusing to join the allegiance, the Clan leader was slaughtered as well as his mate. From RiverClan were several warriors and, as a fatal strike, kits. ShadowClan tried to defend themselves back in their own camp, but didn't stand a chance. Many of their warriors and queens were slaughtered.

 _Aaand_ then there was ThunderClan: heart of the rebellion.

The Dark Forest leader, a ferocious tom named Lionslayer, instructed each of his warriors to grab a cat - queen, kit, elder, warrior, etc - and slit their throat. So that's the story of how over half our Clan died in one night, but it isn't over yet.

He went into the Nursery and dragged out the she-cat, along with her newborn daughter. He forced the new parents to watch as he snapped their daughters neck. Then he had several of his warriors hold down the tom, while he commanded one of his warriors to kill the she-cat. She didn't put up much of a fight as she sobbed over the broken body of her daughter, and it wasn't long until her own blood stained the ground.

The tom, distraught by the murder of his newborn kit and mate, attempted to kill Loinslayer, but he didn't stand a chance. Lionslayer's mind wasn't foggy with grief and his pawsteps weren't heavy with sorrow, and he easily outmatched the tom. Within moments, the tom was murdered as well.

And when those two warriors died, the rebellion died with them.

Lionslayer, satisfied with his work that night, prepared to lead his patrols back to camp when one of his warriors informed him of something most interesting: the tom and she-cat had another kitten. A sickly tom no bigger than the size of a mouse.

With no queen to care for him the kit was sure to die during his first night, and so Lionslayer let him live, deciding that starving to death in his sleep would be just as agonizing as having his neck snapped.

Three days later and the kit was still alive and seemingly stronger. Lionslayer was perplexed. It was impossible for such a weak, sickly kit to survive the night, much less three nights. And yet…

So Lionslayer got creative. Instead of slaughtering the kit like he had done to the rest of his kin, he celebrated him. He dropped the small kitten in the center of camp, the very place his kin had bled to death, and announced that the tom would symbolize the night of The Massacre; he would symbolize every single life that had been stolen; he would symbolize their tortured cries and their pleas for mercy. Every single drop of blood fell on that kit's paws.

Whenever his Clanmates would look at him, they would be reminded of how hopeless and pathetic they were. They would be reminded of what happened when they tried to rebel.

My name is Flamepaw, and I am that kit.

My parents are the tom and she-cat that inspired a rebellion, and ultimately brought on a darker, more servere way of life for those they cared about. Their names? I couldn't tell you. ThunderClan refuses to speak of them.

I'm not very popular in ThunderClan either. I guess that's not much of a shock, all things considered. I mean, my parents only thought of rebelling once they found out they were going to have kits, so technically you could say the entire thing was my fault - which is exactly what my Clanmates do.

As far as my Clanmates are concerned, I'm not one of them. They go out of their way to avoid me, to remind me that I should've died seven moons ago. As I kit I wasn't allowed to play with the other kits, or share a nest with anyone. A Dark Forest warrior forced one of the queens to nurse me, but she made it very clear that I wasn't her.

As an apprentice, my mentor, Jumpfoot, rarely takes me out for training. He leaves me to my own devices mostly, so I tend to wind up in trouble.

Back when I was young and believed in StarClan, I used to pray that they would send me a friend. Obviously I've gotten used to my Clanmates' treatment but that doesn't make life much easier; we've all adjusted to Clan life now and we understand that there's nothing we can do about the Dark Forest's reign, but it doesn't make life any less dark and depressing.

I used to have a friend. Well, he wasn't really a friend, but he was the closest thing I'd ever had: Sparrowpaw. He would tolerate me and talk to me because the Clan wasn't exactly fond of him either (too lazy and antisocial, in their opinion), but he was dead. Probably. The Dark Forest selected him at the last Culling, and from what I've gathered, ThunderClan apprentices don't last very long in the Dark Forest. Even before the Rebellion, we were never their favorites.

Whenever there were no lurking figures, the queens told stories about what life before the Dark Forest took over. They said that ThunderClan used to be the Clan of heroes and nobility. And thinking about it now, it makes perfect sense as to why my parents risked everything on the slim chance of victory; who wouldn't want to restore the golden days?

The days when ThunderClan were noble, ShadowClan were powerful, WindClan were bold and RiverClan were graceful.

But those Clans are dead now. They died many seasons ago, and they don't have a hope to be resurrected and restored. The Dark Forest is too powerful. The Clans are too weak.

Even if StarClan themselves arose from the ashes, they wouldn't be enough to banish the Dark Forest back into the Place of No Stars.

This is life now. We're not satisfied with it, and our days are spent looking over our shoulders and fearing for our lives. But we don't have a choice.

The Dark Forest robbed us of nobility, power, strength and hope; and without those, the Clans will never stand a chance.

As for me? I will never belong here, and no one will ever let me forget it.

* * *

 **ThunderClan**

 _Leader:_ Birchtail - White and brown tom

 _Deputy:_ Sootface - Lean, ashen-black tom

 _Medicine Cat:_ Rosewhisker - Tortoiseshell she-cat - infertile.

 _Warriors:_ \- Bramblestep - Large brown tabby tom with a nicked ear (Apprentice: Rowanpaw)

Meadowlark - Gray and white she-cat

Owlwhisker - Light brown tom (Apprentice: Adderpaw)

Jumpfoot - Muscular black tom (Appprentice: Flamepaw)

Mothdappple - Creamy tabby she-cat with darker paws (Apprentice: Specklepaw)

Thorntail - Dark ginger tom

Blizzardfur - Mottled white tom (Apprentice: Echopaw)

Nightmist - Black she-cat with white paws

Ravenclaw - Lean black tom

 _Apprentices:_ Adderpaw - Ginger-and-black tom

Rowanpaw - Brown tabby tom

Flamepaw - Fire-colored tabby tom with darker paws; green eyes

Echopaw - Silver tabby she-cat

Specklepaw - Small tortoiseshell she-cat

 _Queens:_ Willowsong - Creamy she-cat (Expecting Blizzardfur's kits)

Greeneyes - Ginger she-cat with bright green eyes (Expecting Birchtail's kits)

Reedshine - Pretty sleek black she-cat (Mother to Sootface's kits: Berrykit - Creamy she-kit; Quickkit - Light brown tom)

Larkfeather - Ginger tabby she-cat (Mother to Thornstrike's kits: Bouncekit - Dark ginger tom; Grasskit - Tan she-kit; Greenkit - Black she-kit with striking green eyes)

 _Elders:_ The Dark Forest does not allow elders.

 **ShadowClan**

 _Leader:_ Lakefog - Dark ginger and brown tom

 _Deputy:_ Scorchgaze - Russet-colored tom (Apprentice: Crowpaw)

 _Medicine Cat:_ Smallcloud - Elderly white she-cat

 _Warriors:_ Driftstorm - Pale gray tom (Apprentice: Icepaw)

Flintfoot - Gray and white spotted tom

Weaselfur - Ginger tom with gray legs (Apprentice: Briarpaw)

Pinefrost - White and brown she-cat

Amberdusk - Creamy tabby she-cat

Waspsting - Pale ginger tom with black stripes

Foxblaze - Dark ginger tabby tom (Apprentice: Sleetpaw)

Badgerpelt - Brown tom with a scar going across his back (Apprentice: Marshpaw)

Raggedtail - Russet-colored tabby tom

 _Apprentices:_ Sleetpaw - Jet black tom with ice blue eyes

Marshpaw - Large dark brown tabby tom

Briarpaw – Pretty white-and-brown she-cat

Crowpaw - Dark gray tom

Icepaw - White and gray she-cat

 _Queens:_ Blossompool - Spotted brown and white she-cat (Mother to Foxblaze's kits: Mousekit - Small brown and gray she-kit; Fernkit - Light brown she-kit)

Cloudwing - White she-cat (Mother to Scorchgaze's kits: Brackenkit - Brown and white tom)

Goldenblaze - Golden she-cat (Mother to Driftstorm's kits: Russetkit - Fluffy russet-colored she-kit; Minnowkit - Pale gray she-kit; Dustykit - Brown tom)

Mistystream - Pale gray she-cat (Expecting Badgerpelt's kits)

 _Elders:_ The Dark Forest does not allow elders.

 **RiverClan**

 _Leader:_ Pikefin - Silver tabby tom

 _Deputy:_ Shadedsky - Lean black tom

 _Medicine Cat:_ Bumblehive - Brown tom with thick black stripes

 _Warriors:_ Lizardtooth - Black tom with brown tabby stripes (Apprentice: Splashpaw)

Nettlepelt - Gray tabby tom

Breezestep - Gray tom with lighter markings (Apprentice: Duskpaw)

Gorseflight - Dark gray tom with white markings

Frost-tail - White she-cat

Boulderfur - Dark gray tom (Apprentice: Springpaw)

Cindermouse - Small gray tabby she-cat

Voleclaw - Brown and white tom

Frogspots - Gray and white tom (Apprentice: Brightpaw)

Thrushfoot - Dark ginger tom

Ottersplash - Dark brown tom (Apprentice: Hollypaw)

Featherwing - Silver-stripped tabby tom

Pebblefall - Blue-gray tom

Dusttail - Tan tabby tom with brown legs

 _Apprentices:_ Springpaw - Light brown she-cat with darker markings

Brightpaw - Creamy-colored tabby she-cat with pale green eyes

Duskpaw - Sleek golden she-cat with a white underbelly and chest

Hollypaw - Black and gray she-cat

Heatherpaw - Ginger and white she-cat with brown paws

 _Queens:_ Softsky - Pale cream she-cat (Expecting Pikefin's kits)

Squeaksong - Small tan she-cat (Expecting Dusttail's kits)

Honeyflower - Golden she-cat with ginger paws (Expecting Frogspots's kits)

Flowerpetal - Sleek dark cream she-cat with a lighter underbelly (Expecting Breezestep's kits)

Maplefrost - White she-cat with brown markings (Mother to Shadedsky's kits: Nightkit - Black tom; Poppykit - Light brown she-kit)

Elders: The Dark Forest does not allow elders.

 **WindClan**

 _Leader:_ Swiftpounce - White tom with brown patches

 _Deputy:_ Stonefoot - Dark gray tom

 _Medicine Cat:_ Yarrowleaf - Tan tabby tom

 _Warriors:_ Mistywing - Silver tabby she-cat (Apprentice: Bluepaw)

Vineclaw - Pale brown tom (Apprentice: Beetlepaw)

Skyfeather - Gray tabby tom

Hazelspots - Light brown she-cat

Moorerunner - Pale gray tom (Apprentice: Graypaw)

Aspheart - Lean ginger she-cat with gray paws

Mumblewhisker - Black tom with one brown paw (Apprentice: Poppypaw)

Brownnose - Lean brown tom

 _Apprentices:_ Graypaw - Lean gray tom with a darker tail tip

Beetlepaw - Gray and brown tom with a bobbed tail

Leafpaw - Ginger and brown tom

Bluepaw - Blue-gray she-cat wither darker paws

 _Queens:_ Birdsong - Pretty dark brown she-cat (Mother to Stonefoot's kits: Mintkit - Black she-kit; Toadkit - Brown and black tom)

Tawnyheart - Tortoiseshell she-cat (Expecting Swiftpounce's kits)

Fallowtail - Gray and white she-cat (Expecting Skyfeather's kits)

Elders: The Dark Forest does not allow elders.

 **The Dark Forest (Training Camp)**

 _Leader:_ Lionslayer - Huge golden-brown tom; covered with scars; missing half of an ear.

 _Second-in-Command:_ Blisterwing – Dark brown battle-scarred tom, with a lighter underbelly and paws

 _Medicine Cat(s):_ Nettlewhisker - elderly dark ginger tom; formerly of WindClan.

 _Warriors:_ Shredwhisker - Brown and black tom

Clawstick - Sturdy brown tom (Group: Ratpaw, Toadpaw, and Pantherpaw)

Snowtuft - Small white tom with a long scar across his side

Swampclaw – Dark brown tom with ginger legs

Hollowgaze - Plain brown tom with pale eyes (Group: Splotchpaw)

Silversmoke - Pale gray tabby tom

Maggottail - Gray and black tom

Talonclaw - Large brown tabby tom (Group: Snarepaw, Stainpaw, and Glintpaw)

Wolfmask - Gray tabby tom with darker markings

Onestrike - White tom with brown paws (Group: Sparrowpaw)

Forestpelt - Black tabby tom

Toadtooth - Brown and black tom

 _Apprentices:_ Ratpaw - Dark gray tom

Slatepaw - Lean steel gray she-cat

Toadpaw - Black and white tom

Snarepaw - Large brown and orange tabby

Glintpaw - Light brown she-cat with orange spots

Stainpaw - Red tabby tom

Splotchpaw – Dark ginger tom with russet spots

Sparrowpaw - Long-legged brown tabby tom

 _Breeders:_ Vixenheart - Striking ginger she-cat (Mother to Blisterwing's kits: Cherrykit - Calico she-kit; Ivykit - Silver and black she-kit)

Petalfern - Pale cream she-cat (Mother to Silversmoke's kits: Tallkit - Small brown she-kit; Sandkit - Dark red tom; Cederkit - Gray tom)

Snowdust - Beautiful white she-cat with a pale gray mask; barren (Foster mother to: Barkkit - Dark brown tabby tom; Whimperkit - Fluffy brown she-kit)

Robinsong - Small, golden she-cat (Mother to Clawstick's kits: Turtlekit - Blue-gray she-kit; Galekit - Light cream she-cat with brown splashes)

Sagefoot - Long-legged brown-and-white she-cat (Expecting Leafwind's kits)

Whitepool - White she-cat (Expecting Talonclaw's kits)

Creekmist - Blue-gray she-cat with white paws (Expecting Onestrike's kits)

 _Prisoners:_ Deadgaze – Blind, dusty brown tom with a bobbed tail (Formerly Snakeclaw)

Brokensong – Scrawny gray she-cat (Formerly Streamstone)

Darkspirit – Brown tabby tom (Formerly Brownpaw)

Cursedsoul – Black and white she-cat

 **Cats Outside the Clans**

The Tribe of Rushing Water

* * *

 **Ohhh boy. There's a story behind this one, I promise.**

 **Written in the Shadows (or WitS, as I call it) has been my brain-baby for roughly four years. Over the last four years I've written about twenty outlines for a story, I've revamped and recreated the characters, I've re-written countless chapters and one day I finally decided that WitS would just never come to fruitation; I loved the concept and the characters, but I would never be able to write it and feel like I did it justice.**

 **That latest for about a year.**

 **A few weeks ago I started thinking about WitS again and everything I had planned for it, and... I fell in love with it all over again. I haven't been able to get it off my mind or focus on writing How to Come Home or The Impossible Life of a SkyClan Warrior, and I decided to just sit down and try writing it one more time. This is the 'prologue' I ended up with, and it's drastically different from the first prologue I wrote. In my opinion it's messy and a bit unorganized, but if I spend anymore time editing it my brain will explode (not kidding).**

 **I don't have a solid updating schedule for WitS, and I most likely never will. I didn't even want to post this, but sheer curiosity won me over; I need to know what you guys think of it! So I'll let this just sit in the archives for a week or so, and if I'm blown away by the response then it will become my top priority. If only a few readers take the time to review (in my opinion, if it isn't worth others taking their time to leave a review than it isn't worth my time to write it) then it could be weeks before I update it again, if ever. I've got too many ideas floating around to focus on one that readers won't enjoy.**

 **With that being said, I absolutely adore this fic and the cast and I hope you will too :) The prologue doesn't explain much, but the next couple of chapters will dive into everything and really flesh it out (assuming we get that far).**

 **So without further ado, welcome to Written in the Shadows! :)))**

 **(note: I may change the title, as I've never _loved_ it, so be aware of that!)**

 **~ Katie**


	2. A Painful Reminder

_"First there's Flamepaw. He's the resident troublemaker with a lonely past. His clan hates him because his parents tried to overthrow the DF but failed, and made things ten times worse for the clans. His parents... were slowly killed... The DF only let him live because he was weak and expected to die anyways, and when he didn't and his clan mates grew to despise him, they just let him live." -_ _PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 4, 2015._

* * *

 **Chapter One: A Painful Reminder**

* * *

 **Flamepaw**

I poked my head outside of the Apprentice Den and squinted at the harsh sunlight. My vision adapted within moments and then I stepped out into the open, though no one took much notice.

Cats weaved all around me, some heading towards the measly fresh-kill pile while others settled around camp and shared tongues. There was a cluster of warriors gathered by the camp entrance, and when I identified a specific black pelt I made my way towards the group.

The ThunderClan deputy was an ashen-gray tom named Sootface. He was a fair tom, for the most part, although his rank warranted very little respect. The Dark Forest made it clear that while we still had ranks and titles, those cats did not yield any meaningful power. Deputies sorted patrols and disputes while Clan leaders… I wasn't sure what they did, exactly. Our leader was a white-and-brown tom called Birchtail, and he didn't do much at all except for cower beneath the Dark Forests' paws.

Sootface was in the middle of organizing a border patrol, although he hesitated when I caught his attention. The ThunderClan deputy was perhaps the only cat who could talk to me like I was normal, but he wasn't fond of me. Mostly he scolded me for getting into trouble, because my mentor couldn't be bothered to do the same.

That was the cat I'd approached. He was a muscular black tom named Jumpfoot, and even though he was responsible for my warrior training he went out of his way to avoid me. When I sat down behind him and cleared my throat, I watched the fur along his spine bristle.

"What do you want?" he mumbled, so he didn't disturb his companions.

"Are we going on a patrol this evening?" I asked.

"You already missed your opportunity to patrol today. I sent Rowanpaw to wake you for a dawn patrol this morning, but he said you slept like a rotting log."

My brows creased with confusion. "But I was awake before anyone else this morning!"

"Are you calling my son a liar?" Jumpfoot demanded.

"Uh, _yeah!_ " The warrior's features' twisted with anger and I wondered if perhaps my sacrasum went unappreciated. I hurriedly added, "I'm telling you, I haven't seen Rowanpaw all day long!"

But Jumpfoot ignored my words and lashed his tail for silence. "That's enough," he growled. "I won't waste my time listening to your stories, Flamepaw! You're not patrolling today and that's _final._ "

I wanted to protest and shout and cause a scene; after all, it was the only thing my Clan ever told me I was any good at. But when the other warriors turned their heads and fixed me with their hateful glares, the words died in my throat.

They'd looked at me like this ever since I was born, and yet, fear gripped my heart every single time. Because it was scary when you realized that your birth-Clan wished you were dead.

"Fine," I spat instead, puffing out my chest like I was indignant and not _hurt_. "Whatever, I didn't want to patrol anyway."

I spun around and stalked towards the Elder's Den - or, what used to be the Elder's Den, anyway. The Dark Forest didn't allow the elderly to live in peace, so now it was just an empty den that cats avoided looking at. For that exact same reason, it was also the perfect sulking-spot.

I laid down inside the den and stared longingly at the world outside of it. Warriors moved with a purpose they didn't feel; queens whispered urgently to one another; kits tumbled about and practiced their mock-growls, but as soon as anyone mentioned the Dark Forest their kit-like bravery would flee. It seemed like all of ThunderClan shared that bravery.

It was miserable to be apart of that world, but it was even more miserable to be a stranger watching in from the outside. At least they had one another; I had no one.

I hated the Dark Forest for inflicting their reign of misery, and I hated ThunderClan for shoving me out into cold, but more than anyone else, I hated myself for longing to be apart of their life.

"Flamepaw." a voice interrupted my gloomy thoughts, and then an ashen-gray face followed it. Sootface looked at me with a mixture of emotions. "What you did earlier-"

"Rowanpaw lied," I interrupted him. "He never came to wake me up."

Sootface shook his head. "Does it matter whether or not he lied? Do you think Jumpfoot seriously planned on letting you patrol?" My silence was answer enough. "Exactly. Now, causing that scene wasn't worth it, was it? You have to quit thinking with your emotions and start thinking with your _head_."

"You mean like everyone else?" I demanded. "The rest of the Clan react with their emotions too! Everything we do is based on our fear of the Dark Forest!"

Something flashed within his amber eyes, and I knew he agreed with my point. Of course, he couldn't let _me_ know that so he changed the subject and meowed, "the other mentors took their apprentices out for battle training. Why don't you join them?"

"Because Specklepaw nearly faints whenever we make eye-contact. If I landed a blow on her I think she would actually have a heart-attack."

He fixed me with a knowing look. "You know what I mean, Flamepaw."

" _Why don't you join them?"_ was code for " _Why don't you go and watch everyone else train, while staying out of their way?"_ That was the extent of my training, most days.

Still… the idea of battle training always sent a thrill down my spine. Occasionally the mentors would let me join in, or I could bait the other apprentices into squaring off against me. The slight chance that they would include me was worth it.

"I guess it's worth a shot," I meowed, standing to my paws and letting a grin appear on my face. "But for the record, I'm not going to apologize when I kick their tails and send them whimpering back to camp."

Sootface rolled his eyes. "Of course not."

I shoved Sootface out of my way and laughed when he huffed indignantly. The ThunderClan deputy would die before he admitted it, but he was the closest cat I had to a friend. The thought made my heart feel a little bit lighter, foolish as it was.

 **Written in the Shadows**

Twigs and undergrowth snapped beneath my paws as I ran through the forest. The amount of noise I made would be sure to scare away any nearby prey, and I was sure that the patrols Sootface just sent out would _absolutely love me_ for it. But teaching me to be silent was an art that Jumpfoot gave up on moons ago.

By the time I skidded into the Training Hollow, every head was pointed in my direction. The mentors, Bramblestep, Owlwhisker and Mothdappple looked primed for a migraine; Owlwhisker was mumbling rapidly underneath his breath, and if StarClan still existed I might've thought he was praying to them.

The apprentices were a mixture of reactions. Adderpaw and Rowanpaw, brothers, were glaring at me with unmasked disgust; their sister, Echopaw, was suddenly busying grooming her pelt; and Specklepaw was doing her very best to shrink into the dirt and not distract my gaze.

"Hi guys," I meowed brightly, like nobody there hated me. "I see you started training without me, but that's okay! I can just jump right in."

Specklepaw whimpered.

"Go back to camp, Flame-breath," Adderpaw growled. "There's a reason nobody invited you to train!"

My cheerful grin didn't waver. "Oh yeah, I figured someone just forgot to invite me. You know, like how Rowanpaw _forgot_ to wake me up for the dawn patrol this morning?"

Rowanpaw shrugged, like he had no idea what I was silently accusing him of. "It's not my fault you sleep like the dead." Ah, yes, death, what a hilarious concept to joke about.

"That's enough," Bramblestep ordered. "Flamepaw, we're in the middle of training so if you're going to watch, _be quiet._ "

"Good luck with that," I overheard somebody mumble, but I didn't concern myself with the speaker. The mentors didn't send me away, and I considered that a small victory! The grin I'd been sporting softened into something more genuine, and I took a seat next to Echopaw.

The silver-tabby she-cat offered me a quiet side-smile, and I looked behind me just to make sure she was actually _smiling_ at _me_. Echopaw was never outspokenly rude to me, but I figured that was just because she was so polite and kept any mockery to herself. When I turned back to face her and ask, just for confirmation that her smile was intended for me, she was already focused on the session ahead.

I followed her gaze and tuned into the mentors, who were instructing the next duo. "Alright Rowanpaw," Bramblestep was saying, "I want you to be the offensive. Remember to make sure your guard never falls."

Rowanpaw nodded, seemingly bored. "Gotcha."

Mothdapple turned to Specklepaw. "As for you, you're on the defensive. Rowanpaw is bigger and stronger than you, so put as much power into your blows as possible!"

Specklepaw pouted. "Why do I have to go against Rowanpaw? Can't I go against Echopaw, since she's a she-cat too?"

From beside me, Echopaw scoffed.

Mothdapple narrowed her amber eyes and ignored her companions mocking laughter. "She-cats can hold their own against toms just fine," the creamy she-cat said between gritted-teeth. "If you're physically weaker than it's because you haven't been training hard enough."

" _But_ -" Specklepaw tried to protest, but a sharp look from Mothdapple silenced her. Instead Specklepaw bowed her head and trugged towards her position, already defeated in her mind.

"Let me fight him," the words escaped my lips without any thought.

Rowanpaw snorted. " _Please._ Specklepaw is more of a challenge than you could ever be - at least she trains everyday!"

"It sounds like you're scared," I retorted.

The brown tabby tom had looked so smug moments before, but now his features twisted into anger. He snarled and took a step towards me that was meant to be intimidating, but I eagerly stood up and-

"Sit down," Bramblestep commanded. "Flamepaw, one more word from you and I'll send you back to camp! I won't let you distract my apprentice!"

I wanted to protest against the older warrior, but I wanted to watch the session even more. I growled lowly but that was the most defiance they got from me.

Rowanpaw smirked at me and I narrowed my eyes. Even if I didn't train with Jumpfoot very often, I spied on training sessions and copied their movements when I was alone. I might not be the most technically-skilled apprentice but I was strong, and I was definitely strong enough to hold my own against Rowanpaw.

Mothdapple raised her tail, the signal to begin, and I watched on silently. Rowanpaw easily outmatched Specklepaw, but to be fair, it didn't look like the she-cat was trying very hard. On one paw that bothered me, because I would have given anything to be trained like a regular apprentice; on the other paw, I understood why she wasn't throwing herself into the training session. It was expected that Specklepaw would serve as a permanent queen once she completed her training.

I risked a glance at Echopaw. _What about her? Does she want to serve as a warrior, or a queen?_ Echopaw was pretty and polite and would have no trouble finding a mate, but I'd never heard her mention it before. Then again, we weren't friends and she certainly didn't share her thoughts with me.

The match was ending just as I tuned back into it. Rowanpaw had Specklepaw pinned down, and I wondered how he managed to pin her so quickly when he was supposed to be offensive…

"Specklepaw, you can't just submit!" Mothdapple exclaimed, clearly losing her patience.

"But he pinned me."

"After you _rolled over_ and _let him_."

"I can't say I'm surprised," Owlwhisker mumbled to Bramblestep. The other tom muttered his agreement, and I think Mothdapple's eye twitched.

"Alright, that's enough training for today," she announced. Adderpaw and Rowanpaw stole glances at their mentors, who nodded confirmation.

Slowly every cat stood to their paws, stretched out the kinks in their muscles and started back to camp. Specklepaw pressed closely to her mentor's side, still carefully avoiding eye contact with me. Adderpaw glanced at Owlwhisker and said, "Rowanpaw and I are going hunting first."

Owlwhisker hesitated before speaking. "Alright, but be careful. If you catch so much as a _whiff_ of the Dark Forest, return to camp immediately." He shared a look with Bramblestep. "They've been acting so strange in the evenings. More uptight than usual."

"We'll be fine," Rowanpaw replied, flicking his tail dismissively. "The patrols won't even arrive until sun-down."

"I think I'm going to go hunting too," I said aloud, just for kicks. As I expected, no one spared me a glance.

The group split up. The mentors, Specklepaw and Echopaw headed for camp whilst Adderpaw and Rowanpaw delved into the undergrowth, deeper into the territory. I went in the opposite direction as my Denmates and mulled over Owlwhisker's warning.

He wasn't wrong. Of course the Dark Forest was always uptight and ready to slit throats, but these days I caught their warriors exchanging glances, scoping out the camps and eyeing certain warriors. But even if they were acting shifty(er than normal) I wasn't too concerned by it; I wanted nothing to do with the Dark Forest, and besides, green-leaf would be ending soon and everyone knew what 'event' came with leaf-fall...

However, I wasn't worried about The Culling either. Only the strongest, most skilled apprentices from every Clan were selected, and even if I was strong, my skills weren't perfected. I supposed I could thank Jumpfoot for that, at least.

For the next few hours I busied myself with hunting. I wasn't a particularly gifted hunter, but Jumpfoot had taught me the basics and it was easier to practice hunting by yourself than battlemoves. By the time I was ready to head back to camp I'd caught a lazy squirrel and a mouse.

Squirrel was my favorite prey, but I reminded myself that it would feed more cats than the measly mouse. As twisted as it seemed, I still wanted to care for my Clan. As long as nobody saw me drop the squirrel on the fresh-kill pile they would eat it, and I always received a rush of pride when my hard work paid off. So with that in mind, I settled down to eat the mouse.

I was just picking its' meat off the bones when the bushes behind me rustled. I immediately stiffened, my ginger fur bristled along my spine and a sense of dread gripped my heart. _It can't be the Dark Forest patrols this early! I would have scented them!_

I unsheathed my claws and prepared myself to fight for my life, when only Adderpaw and Rowanpaw stepped out of the bushes. I heaved a heavy sigh of relief. "You nearly scared me out of my fur!" I snapped at them. "I thought the patrols came early."

Adderpaw looked to my claws and smirked. "Did you really think you could fight off an entire Dark Forest patrol by yourself?"

I glared at ginger-and-black tom. "I wasn't going to turn tail and run away like a coward."

Adderpaw rolled his amber eyes. "That's the problem with you, Flame-brain. You never know when to run."

Suddenly Rowanpaw lunged at me! He caught me off guard and sent the two of us rolling. When we stopped he had me pinned, and smirked deviously from above. "Like right now, for example," he said smugly. "You're going to pay for calling me a liar in front of everyone!"

I spat in his face and kicked out at his legs. He fell on top of me with an ' _omph'_ and I snatched my chance, using my strength to flip us over. I towered over him and snarled, "you _are_ a liar!"

For some reason he didn't like that. He pushed me off of him, and then we lunged at each other again. Rowanpaw was obviously more skilled than I was, but I held my own against him. He seemed to realize that he underestimated me, and I watched his frustration blow into anger. He growled and snarled, and when he landed a blow on the side of my face a sharp pain followed it.

"You unsheathed your claws!" I accused him.

" _Run_ ," he spat, before landing another strike. I pulled away and considered running for a fleeting moment; if anyone found out that I'd fought with Rowanpaw, they would volunteer me for The Culling. But when the brown tabby tom added, "just like your _parents_ should have, and maybe _they_ would still be _alive_ ," running was no longer an option.

I growled and charged at the other tom, knocking him off of his paws. I slammed my paws on either side of him and snarled, "don't you breathe _a word_ about my parents!"

For the first time, I watched fear enter his amber eyes. Within heartbeats a set of teeth latched onto my scruff and pulled me off of him, and then Adderpaw struck me. Rowanpaw jumped to his paws and dived for my underbelly. I growled and hissed and played the offense the best I could, but two against one would never be a fair fight.

Adderpaw had just shoved me onto the ground when he suddenly stiffened. I was breathing heavily and my body was sore, but the fighter in me growled, "what, have you had enough yet?"

"Shut-up!" Adderpaw hissed. He looked to Rowanpaw and said, "we have to go."

His littermate frowned. "What, why?"

"I smell _patrols_!"

I inhaled a sharp breath. Rowanpaw scented the air and replied, "I don't smell anything."

Adderpaw shoved him and said, "just trust me, we have to _go_! _Now_!" And with that, the black-and-ginger tom forgot about me and darted across the forest, his tail streaming behind him as he fled towards camp.

I stood to my paws and planned to follow him, but Rowanpaw jumped in front of me and blocked my path. "I'm not finished with you," he snarled.

"Are you mouse-brained?!" I demanded. "If the Dark Forest is really here, then-"

The sound of pawsteps interrupted me. There were no voices, no growls or snarls; just the drumming of pawsteps and the snapping of twigs and undergrowth, and I couldn't help but think that my neck would be next.

It was too late to run.

 _But it's not too late to hide,_ I realized. I looked around frantically and searched for a place that would hide me. The undergrowth wasn't dense enough to conceal my ginger tabby fur, and the tree trunks weren't large enough to completely obscure me from vision… _wait, that's it!_

I spun around and dug my claws into the tree trunk behind me, and started pulling myself up. One step after another, until I was climbing and thanking generations of ThunderClan warriors before me for the natural gift to scale trees. I didn't rest until I was well in the air, concealed by a cluster of faded green leaves. I poked my head out and-

My heart stopped.

Rowanpaw stood in the center of the clearing, unmoving. _What are you doing?!_ I wanted to shout. _He looks like a mouse right before you pounce… he's paralyzed with fear!_

I tried desperately to think of ways to help him, but it was too late. Within moments, the bushes began to rustle and this time, out stepped a patrol of Dark Forest warriors. They surrounded Rowanpaw, and the leader of the patrol said something I didn't quite catch, but the rest of his patrol burst into wicked laughter.

Then they lunged, and it took everything in me not to retch. I squeezed my eyes shut but that only heightened my other senses; Rowanpaw's screams echoed throughout the forest, and I could hear the tearing of flesh and cracking of bones. I buried my face in my paws and cried, praying to _StarClan_ that they would be merciful and take Rowanpaw's life soon. But they really must have been dead, because that torture continued until sun-down.

 _It's not fair,_ I wanted to yowl. _They were_ _early_ _! They shouldn't have arrived until now! How were we supposed to guess that they would- that Rowanpaw would-_

But once again, the Dark Forest made it painfully clear: we lived in _their_ world, and here, they made the rules.

"Alright, that's enough," one voice suddenly boomed. "He's not going to be breaking anymore rules now, are you, _little warrior_?" Mocking laughter followed his question, and if I didn't feel so sick to my stomach than I would certainly feel righteous indignation. "Come on, we've got to share the news with his _Clan_."

Unlike when they first appeared, the patrol made as much noise as possible: victory screeches and howls filled the evening air, and the burning desire to make every single one of those warriors pay was almost overwhelming.

I carefully lowered myself from the tree and landed on the ground with a thud. I immediately averted my gaze from Rowanpaw's mangled form, until I realized that the Dark Forest wouldn't return to bury his body. I steeled my nerves and took a peek at my former Denmate, and regretted it instantly. However horrible it had sounded from above, the sounds did nothing to prepare me for the actual image.

Rowanpaw was unrecognizable. His brown tabby figure was pulsing with open wounds, and his thick pelt was matted and soaked with his own crimson blood. His body jutted out in every direction, a clear indication that several of his bones had been snapped and broken. His face was torn open… his jaw hung limply… blood streamed into eyes that were once bright with fear, but now completely void of any life.

I couldn't contain it any longer. I bent over and began retching, the remains of my earlier mouse poured out of my stomach until I was dry heaving and gasping for air.

Once there was nothing left in my stomach, I started to dig a hole. Every so often I would glance over my shoulder at the mangled, bloody body and a wave of emotions would slam into me: shame, regret, despair and fear for the Dark Forest.

 _I could have done something,_ I thought. _I should have done something! I could have jumped off the branch and ambushed the patrol, or distracted them long enough for Rowanpaw to run!_ Scenario after scenario played in my mind, every single one in which Rowanpaw lived.

When the hole was finally deep enough to contain a body, I grabbed Rowanpaw's scruff and dragged him towards it. Blood seeped into my mouth and I gagged, and within moments I was dry heaving again. I hated the taste of blood.

I shoved Rowanpaw's body into the hole and began piling dirt back on top of it. Almost without realizing it, I began to talk to him. "I know we weren't friends, and I'm probably the last cat you wanted to do this, but I'm all you've got. I guess that sounds pretty lonely, but maybe now you'll understand how I've felt my entire life." I heaved a bitter sigh. "At least you have others that would have buried you, if given the chance. Jumpfoot, Adderpaw, Echopaw. They all would have been here for you. Me?" I laughed dryly. "They would have left my body for the crows, and something tells me you would've too."

Shame followed my bitterness. _He's already suffered enough._ "I don't know where cats go when they die now. StarClan doesn't exist, so maybe you just don't exist either. But if you do go somewhere, I hope Morningsong is waiting for you." Morningsong, the mother of Rowanpaw, Adderpaw and Echopaw died of starvation soon after kitting.

I stepped back and eyed my work. It wasn't easy to make a grave look attractive, and I didn't think it mattered, anyway. "I hope you find somewhere," I muttered. I spared the grave one final glance, and then raced back to camp.

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **From the snippets you read, what do you think The Culling is?**

* * *

 **And I present to you, chapter two! Or, chapter one, if you consider the previous chapter to be a prologue.**

 **So here is our first real look at Flamepaw. Out of the three main characters I think I struggle the most with Flamepaw's head, because I know exactly what's going on up there but it's not easy to translate it. A lot of you commented that I captured his bitterness very well, and while he is a very bitter kitty, Flamepaw also has a huge heart and a desperate longing to belong. I hope that conveyed well.**

 **I'm not sure which POV we'll get next chapter, seeing as I already have both Sleetpaw and Brightpaw's POV completed. I'll probably just combine them because they're not as long as Flamepaw's (which is over 4,000 words), but I don't want to break 8K with it... but those are problems for me, not you guys!**

 **Speaking of you guys... YOU'RE ALL AMAZING! :D :D :D**

 **The prologue received 17 very enthusiastic reviews, and every single one of them warmed my heart like only homemade chocolate-chip cookies can! There were a couple familiar faces and a few new usernames, and I hope I'll hear from you all again this chapter.**

 **Seriously, thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review and bring a smile to my face :) :) :)**


	3. Sleetpaw and Brightpaw

_"Sleetpaw is extremely talented. Everything comes naturally to him. He doesn't really have to train, he's incredibly handsome, brilliantly smart, everyone loves him, and he's a bigger prick then Crowfeather. He's reserved, thinks everyone around him is an idiot, wants nothing to do with anyone, and although he doesn't like the DF by any means, he respects their strength." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 4, 2015._

* * *

 **Chapter Two: Sleetpaw and Brightpaw**

* * *

 **Sleetpaw**

"Hey Sleetpaw, did _you_ catch that _giant_ toad on the fresh-kill pile?"

"Yes."

"Hey Sleetpaw, you look _especially handsome_ this morning. Did you do something different with your pelt?"

"No."

"Hey Sleetpaw, can you help me with this battle move?"

"Why would I do that?"

"Hey Sleetpaw, do you want to go hunting with me later?"

"No. Ask me again and I'll suffocate you in your sleep."

The general assumption around ShadowClan was that I wasn't a morning-cat; that was their explanation as to why I never agreed to their offers, denied their invitations and made various threats. The truth was that I despised every single one of my Clanmates. I also despised any phrase or question or compliment that began with " _Hey Sleetpaw"_ , so my attitude towards them wasn't bound to change.

"Hey Sleetpaw, will you-" Before Crowpaw could finish that question, I spun around and fixed him with a death glare. The dark gray tom froze where he stood, amber eyes wide with fear. This was one of those glares that I reserved for especially annoying mornings.

"Finish that sentence," I started, dangerously calm, "and I will slit your throat."

Crowpaw's eyes managed to widen impossibly as he stumbled backwards. "U-uh, right, I forgot you weren't a morning-cat. Maybe later then!" I scowled after the dark gray tom and entertained the idea of chasing after him, protesting that not being a "morning-cat" had nothing to do with it, but ultimately decided to let him live.

If I added 'murderer' to my list of titles then my Clanmates would probably go around killing each other. Not that I valued their lives, but I prefered to not trek through bloodsoaked marsh. Besides, there was already more than enough murder in the Clans thanks to the Dark Forest.

No, I wouldn't kill anyone today.

But… one day.

When my training was complete, and I was strong enough.

And then. Then I would leave ShadowClan and set off on my own, in pursuit of the bane of my existence. Runningpaw.

My brother.

 **Written in the Shadows**

"Stronger, Marshpaw! You're on the defense, so take him down!"

 _He doesn't need to be stronger, he needs to be quicker; he doesn't have time to reach any of my weak spots,_ I thought, blue eyes narrowed in concentration. Marshpaw growled and aimed a blow at my neck, but I was already dodging and rolling forward to kick him in the chin.

"You're doing excellently, Sleetpaw!" My mentor, Foxblaze, called. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I didn't understand why Lakefog insisted I have a mentor. Foxblaze just stood in my way.

I landed a few smart-placed strikes on my opponent, darting from side-to-side as he attempted to block my onslaught. Marshpaw growled and snarled, but I remained silent as we dueled. There was no need for me to show off.

"Marshpaw, quit giving him so many openings!"

"Finish him off now, Sleetpaw!"

I growled (mostly out of frustration that Foxblaze thought he actually had something to do with my training), and went for the killing move. I made to dart left and then, at the last second, swerved and went right. Marshpaw wasn't prepared for the maneuver and so when I landed a hard blow on his neck, he collapsed.

"We have a victor!" Foxblaze crowed. I rolled my eyes.

Badgerpelt looked disgusted with his apprentice. "Seriously, Marshpaw? You fell for that trick _again_?"

Marshpaw growled, "he always saves it for the end! I always forget to expect it!"

Badgerpelt shook his head. "Pathetic," he rumbled. "If a Dark Forest warrior saw you, they-"

"They would be impressed," Marshpaw snapped. "I'm one of the best apprentices in the Clans!" His amber gaze slipped towards me. "I just have the _misfortune_ of sharing a Clan with the most impressive apprentice ever." Venom dripped from his tone.

I simply grunted in response.

"We should get back to camp," the other mentor, Driftstorm, spoke up. "The Dark Forest will patrol soon."

Foxblaze and Badgerpelt exchanged glances, anxiety and irritation clashing in their gazes. They weren't fond of the Dark Forest, but they knew better than to be missing when their daily patrols stopped by to ensure that the Clans were behaving themselves. If they noticed you were absent, you would be punished.

Sometimes with lashings, other times with death. Occasionally they decided to get creative and torture you. It was best to not chance it.

"Alright," Badgerpelt grunted, standing to his paws. "Let's go then. I don't want to be absent by the time those crowfood-eaters arrive."

"For sure," Foxblaze snorted. "Remember the last time someone was out when they patrolled?"

"How could anyone forget?" Driftstorm murmured, eyes dark. "Amberdusk couldn't eat anything for nearly a half-moon, her mouth was so mangled."

I wasn't paying much attention to the mentors, so when Icepaw fell into step beside me I stiffened. I considered snapping at her, ask her if she was lost, but quickly dismissed both of those options. Icepaw was strange and didn't comprehend sarcasm, so it was best to not waste my breath.

Finally Icepaw meowed, "Last night Marshpaw was bragging that he had a plan to win against you."

"Well, I won, so Marshpaw was wrong, wasn't he?"

"What if hasn't set the plan in motion yet?" she pressed.

I rolled my blue eyes. "Marshpaw is a lizard-brain. Even if he were capable of creating such a plan, he wouldn't be able to execute it. I'm not worried, and you shouldn't be either."

"But Sleetpaw, what if he-"

I turned and fixed the white she-cat with an icy glare, effectively silencing whatever thoughts had been going through her head. Punctuating each word with a cold point, I repeated, "I'm. Not. Worried."

Icepaw swallowed and nodded, and didn't utter another word for the remainder of the trek.

 **Written in the Shadows**

By the time we returned to camp, the sun was setting behind the mountaintops. I paused outside the entrance for a moment to take in the scene; the mountains had always disturbed me. I didn't like how tall they towered, even from far away. Queens told stories of Clans that lived in the mountains, but they were wiped out by now. The Dark Forest never would have allowed them to thrive in peace.

"Sleetpaw!" a shrill voice called. I didn't bother masking my scowl when Briarpaw appeared in the entrance. "Hurry up, the patrol will be here any moment!"

"I'm a tail-length away from the entrance," I meowed dryly. "I think I'll make it."

She narrowed her amber eyes and pursed her lips into a pout. Briarpaw was considered very pretty by many. I was too irritated by her presence to notice her appearance. "Why do you have to be so stubborn?" she asked when I brushed past her. "I'm only trying to help you."

"I don't require assistance; from you, nor anyone else," I retorted coldly.

She huffed. "It's a good thing you're handsome, otherwise I wouldn't put up with that attitude of yours."

 _Well, thank goodness I'm handsome,_ I thought, sarcastic. _I don't know what I would do without you._

Except maybe suffer one less head-ache per day.

My Clanmates whispered amongst themselves as I padded towards the fresh-kill pile. There wasn't much selection, so I chose a blue-tailed lizard and laid down to enjoy my meal. Of course, it was hard to enjoy it when I spent the majority of time glaring at cats who got a little too friendly, or a little too close for comfort.

At some point the chatter began to dwindle, and then there was total silence. At that point I discarded my lizard and watched the entrance with narrowed blue eyes. _They're here._

A heartbeat later and the Dark Forest patrol strolled into camp. There were four of them, all battle-scarred and muscular. I scanned them, but was left unsatisfied; Runningpaw wasn't among them. He never was.

However, I did recognize one of the toms as former ShadowClan: a dark brown tabby tom named Forestpelt. He, along with Runningpaw, had been selected to join the Dark Forest and train as one of their warriors last new-leaf. I hadn't seen him for many moons, until he completed his training and earned his warrior named, but now he occasionally patrolled ShadowClan.

I hadn't seen Runningpaw since he left, and was always tempted to demand that Forestpelt give me his whereabouts, explain why he never patrolled ShadowClan, but that would be suicidal. Even the youngest kit knew that you didn't speak to a Dark Forest warrior unless they spoke to you first, and sometimes not even then, if you were intelligent.

Forestpelt was former ShadowClan and therefore might not punish me, but only a lizard-brain would take such a risk. Besides, it was clear that his loyalties laid with the Dark Forest now. His eyes held the exact same dark, bloodthirsty gleam as his companions.

The leader of the patrol, a brown and black tabby with a nicked ear, stepped forward. "Lakefog," he growled, staring at our Clan leader, "what do you have to report?"

Lakefog looked as if he might be caging his own growl, but meowed, "Nothing unusual, Shredwhisker. Green-leaf has officially come to an end, so prey is preparing for leaf-bare. We have enough for the time being, but once leaf-fall nears an end we-"

"Any hints of rebellion?" Shredwhisker demanded.

Lakefog's jaw clenched, but his voice was dull when he answered, "none."

"Good," Shredwhisker meowed. His gaze swept over the Clan. "It seems as though ShadowClan are finally learning: you can't win against us. The more you try to fight, the bloodier your marshes will be. It's a shame that you've taken so long to learn this lesson; a shame that it took The Massacre to knock some sense into your skulls."

I stiffened, as most did whenever The Massacre was mentioned. That night, many lives from every Clan were stolen. My parents were both slaughtered.

"Forestpelt, Boulderdust," Shredwhisker boomed, "go and pick yourselves out a piece of prey from their pile." He turned and smirked at Lakefog. "We didn't have time to eat before we departed from camp, so it's only fair that your Clan feed us."

Lakefog gritted his teeth. "Please," he started, "help yourselves."

Forestpelt and Boulderdust exchanged wicked smirks before prowling towards the fresh-kill. Cats scrambled to move out of their way, while others made a point to stare defiantly at the duo, but no one made a move to stop them.

They were barely a tail-length away from me. Boulderdust didn't pay me much attention (he was occupied with intimidating the stripes off Flintstripe), but Forestpelt paused long enough to give me a once-over. He narrowed his green eyes, then brought them up to meet my own ice-blue eyes. I met his gaze defiantly but didn't utter a word.

Finally, he murmured, "you look just like him."

My ears perked forward. "My brother?" I asked, disregarding the possible punishments I could endure for speaking the two words. I hadn't heard or seen whisker of Runningpaw ever since he left with the Dark Forest. He must have his warrior name by now, but I didn't know even that much.

Forestpelt didn't respond; he simply stared at me. I was tempted to rake my claws down his face, to _demand_ that he give me answers, and I would have done so, if only Shredwhisker hadn't called, "Forestpelt, you've had your fun, now get your tail back here!"

The brown tabby tom growled, but hastily snatched a toad before returning to Shredwhisker's side. The fourth patrol member murmured something in his ear, and Forestpelt nodded. His narrowed green eyes never strayed from mine, and I felt a sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach.

 _Why did he bring up Runningpaw?_

Shredwhisker scanned the Clan one final time before nodding, and flicking his tail over his back; the signal to leave. His patrol members filed out one-by-one, until only he remained. "I have to say," he began, "I'm disappointed that you all behaved yourselves. ThunderClan had an apprentice killed today. I thought we might join the fun," he finished, shooting me a pointed look. The black fur along my spine bristled, and I narrowed my eyes.

 _What does that mean? Did they plan for Forestpelt to mention Runningpaw, to provoke me?_

But Shredwhisker didn't give anything else away. He turned around and strutted out of camp, tail raised high behind him. The Clan heaved a collective sigh when his tail disappeared through the exit, and even I released a breath I didn't know I'd been holding.

"Wow," Crowpaw breathed, padding over to my side. "Forestpelt looked you straight in the eye, and you didn't look away!" He sat down and leaned forward slightly, awed. "He said something to you, didn't he? What'd he say?"

" _You look just like him."_ The words echoed in my head. Had Forestpelt been talking about Runningpaw at all? What if he meant someone else? I didn't remember my parents very well, but I recalled sharing my father's black pelt. Maybe he'd meant Stormwind; after all, the Dark Forest knew exactly who my parents were. They helped execute the Rebellion, and they paid for it dearly.

I closed my eyes and inhaled a breath. If I concentrated hard enough I could still feel Runningpaw's presence beside me, whispering to me as our parents were slaughtered in the center of camp.

" _It's going to be alright, Sleetkit… I'll protect you… I'll make sure no one ever hurts you. I promise, one day we're going to make them pay for this; for everything…"_

"Sleetpaw?" Crowpaw prompted, dragging me out of my thoughts. His amber eyes were bright with awe, as if he was gazing at a StarClan warrior. "What did Forestpelt say?"

My paws were trembling. Not so much that Crowpaw would notice, but I could feel it.

"Sleetpaw-?"

"Nothing," I meowed, voice completely void. "He didn't say anything."

 **Written in the Shadows**

* * *

 _Brightpaw of RiverClan. She's beautiful and because of that, desired. In a world where she-cat are usually VERY weak and considered good for only mating, she's determined to prove everyone wrong. Her parents try constantly to talk her out of becoming a warrior, instead settling as a queen, but she refuses. - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 4, 2015._

* * *

 **Brightpaw**

The rivers were still warm in the green-leaf afternoon, and I enjoyed it for as long as I could. Leaf-fall was upon us, which meant we only had a pawful of warm afternoons left. _That's what you're worried about, _the small voice in my head spoke up. _You're thinking about sunny afternoons and warm waters when you should be worried about what else leaf-fall brings._

"Of course," I sighed to myself, shifting on the rock that I was basking on. "The _Culling._ "

The Culling took place at the beginning of every leaf-fall and every new-leaf. On the first day of that new moon, the most elite Dark Forest warriors were sent to every Clan to select two apprentices to bring back to their camp, and to train as enforcers: Dark Forest warriors.

It was a brutally dangerous process, and several apprentices were always killed along the way. Sometimes apprentices were made into warriors and never sent to patrol their birth Clan, to discourage old bonds. Sometimes apprentices were made into warriors and only patrolled their birth Clan, in order to send a message: look what we can do to your Clanmates.

We can train them to be bloodthirsty, battle-hungry monsters. We can turn them against you.

And there's nothing you can do about it.

I blew out a breath and laid my head on my paws, tail flicking in the waters. I hated this. I hated the lifestyle that I was born into. I hated watching my Clanmates be broken down. I hated not being able to help them, to help _anyone_.

And not just because the Dark Forest controlled our every decision. In RiverClan, we had decided that it was best to be safe than to be sorry, and so whatever ensured our safety, we did it. No matter the humiliation, no matter if it went against our morels.

We, the once proud and noble RiverClan, were nothing more than a group of sniveling suck-ups.

To make matters worse, we conformed to what the Dark Forest wanted us to be. They wanted the Clans to produce warriors for them, so that's what we did. Warriors would pair up and become mates, even if they didn't love one another, simply to have kits and feel safe. She-cats hardly ever served as warriors anymore; they completed their training, earned their name, and then started a family. And that was that.

The Dark Forest loved us; we were their favorites. And for the most part, we were exactly what we wanted to be: safe.

Except I didn't want to be safe; not if it meant throwing away my life for a destiny I didn't choose myself.

 **Written in the Shadows**

"Well, look who decided to catch up on some _much needed_ beauty sleep," a golden tabby she-cat taunted, as I swam over to the shore. I shook out my pelt and then fixed her with a heated glare.

"You're telling me you already caught five fish?"

"Surprised?" Duskpaw asked, smirking as she gestured to a pile of fish only a tail-length away. "Five fish and the sun has only begun to set. I bet you haven't even caught five yet, and that's why you were sunbathing; you've already accepted defeat."

I rolled my bright green eyes. "You know, you wouldn't waste so much breath if you allowed others to talk. For your information, I caught my fish _ages_ ago and already took them back to camp."

I couldn't help the triumphant smirk that played across my lips, especially when Duskpaw narrowed her blue eyes and growled, "you're lying."

"Oh yeah?" I challenged. "Three minnows, a carp, and a trout."

"Minnows don't count!"

"They're fish, aren't they?"

"They're so small!"

"You still eat them, don't you?"

"Ugh," Duskpaw snarled in irritation, "I can't _stand you_!"

"Likewise," I spat.

"Oh my goodness, we can hear you two clear across the territory!"

I turned around and smiled sheepishly at the other two she-cats. Hollypaw and Springpaw looked less than impressed.

"She started it," Duskpaw snorted.

"I don't believe you," Hollypaw retorted. "Duskpaw, you start arguments with _everyone_!"

"Only when others are wrong!" she protested.

As Duskpaw and Hollypaw went back and forth, Springpaw slipped away and nudged my shoulder. "Already finished hunting?"

"Awhile ago," I confirmed.

My littermate huffed. "I'll never understand how you finish everything so quickly. Changing bedding, patrolling, hunting…"

"It's easy when you focus and don't mess around," I replied, shooting her a pointed look as we started back to camp.

Springpaw groaned. "I _know_ , I know. But training is so _boring_!"

"It's _essential_."

"Not if you don't plan on serving as a warrior," she pointed out.

I glanced at her. "You're not?"

The brown tabby she-cat shrugged. "Maybe for a moon or two, but it's much safer to be a permanent queen. I was talking to Pebblefall about it, and he said we could pair up."

I tried to mask my scowl. " _Pebblefall_? Just the other day you were going on about how annoying he is!"

Springpaw flicked an ear and replied, "Well, I was wrong. Pebblefall is a fine tom."

I snorted.

Springpaw laid her tail across my back and murmured, "Look, I know how you feel about she-cats choosing to be permanent queens. And I understand, but some cats just aren't meant to be warriors."

"And why aren't _you_ meant to be a warrior?" I asked hotly. "Because you're a she-cat, and you want to feel safe? Being a warrior has always been a dangerous duty, but she-cats used to serve without problem!"

My green-eyed littermate shook her head. "Come on Brightpaw, how would you know how dangerous being a warrior used to be? The Dark Forest has ruled over the Clans for seasons."

"But-"

"Anyway, you can't deny that things have changed since they took over. I know it must have been dangerous back then, but it's even more so now." She lowered her gaze to her paws. "Besides, there's nothing wrong with wanting to feel safe…"

 _Except you're being a coward._ "I guess not."

"And hey," she continued, perking up, "maybe when you're a warrior, you'll get to mentor one of my kits. That would be cool, right?"

Springpaw was trying so hard to lift my spirits that I forced a smile, for her sake. "Yeah. Hopefully they're not as soft as you though, otherwise I'll have to run their paws off."

"You wouldn't dare," my littermate shot back. She was grinning happily, and gestured behind us. "At least you won't be the only one from our group to go on to be a warrior; you'll have Duskpaw too!"

I glanced backwards. Duskpaw and Hollypaw were bickering about something or another, and Duskpaw's golden fur bristled along her spine. I heaved a heavy sigh. "Please, don't remind me."

Springpaw purred. "Come on, everyone knows that you two are secretly best friends."

" _We most certainly are not_." But Springpaw was right; I wasn't fooling anyone. While Duskpaw and I argued over anything and everything and insisted on making even the simplest task into a competition, there was an unspoken friendship between us. We cared about each other greatly, we just… had a funny way of showing it.

"Whatever!" Duskpaw snapped, catching my attention. Her tail was raised haughty as she declared, "you're just jealous because _I'm_ the most attractive apprentice in RiverClan."

She was talking to Hollypaw, but I wasn't about to let her get away with such a declaration. I spun around and growled, "you are _not_ prettier than me."

Duskpaw snorted. "Oh please, you're the ugliest she-cat to have ever disgraced the Clans!"

"Well, at least my pelt doesn't look like dried mud!"

"Excuse you, my pelt is _golden_!"

Springpaw and Hollypaw exchanged glances, before rolling their eyes and continuing on their way back to camp.

 **Written in the Shadows**

We entered camp a while later, still arguing about which one of us was the prettiest. Usually I tried to keep my vanity to a minimum, but things had taken a turn for the ugly when Duskpaw brought up our longtime crush, Sleetpaw of ShadowClan.

"I'm just saying, I overheard that he prefers blue eyes over green."

"You did _not_ overhear that!" I growled.

"Well, it's not like y _ou_ know which he prefers. You've never even spoken to him!" Duskpaw retorted.

I huffed. "When do I ever have the chance? It's not like we're allowed to have Gatherings anymore! Besides, you've only ever spoken to him to apologize for stomping on his tail!"

"That's still more than _you've_ ever said to him!"

I narrowed my eyes. "Fine. How about this: the next time one of us see Sleetpaw on patrol we have to speak to him. And whoever he seems to enjoy the most can have dibs on him."

The golden tabby she-cat flashed me a smirk. "You're on; may the prettier she-cat win."

"I intend to," I sniffed.

We split apart after that. Duskpaw went off to find Ottersplash, her mentor, and I headed towards the Nursery. I lept gracefully over the creek that divided the Nursery from the rest of the camp and nosed my way through the reed screen. "Flowerpetal?" I called into the den.

"Just a moment!"

A few heartbeats later and a sleek, dark cream she-cat stepped out of the Nursery. Her stomach poked out of her sides ever so slightly, the only hint of her pregnancy. She still had a few more moons until she was due to kit.

"Brightpaw," she greeted me, a fond smile playing across her lips. I purred happily when she nuzzled the top of my head. "How was training today?"

"Fine," I replied. I couldn't help but puff out my chest as I added, "I finished my task first. Again."

Flowerpetal purred and licked my ear. "What a surprise. At this rate Pikefin will have to make you a warrior _early_." Although she praised me, I easily detected the anxiety in her gaze. I stifled my frown the best I could and shoved my hurt to the side; I knew exactly how my mother felt about me pursuing the life of a warrior, instead of choosing safety as a queen.

"Hopefully," I simply replied. "How's Softsky doing today?"

Softsky was the newest addition to the Nursery, and the soon-to-be mother of Pikefin's kits. Although it always bothered me when RiverClan lost a warrior to the life of a queen, I couldn't muster the same irritation towards Softsky. She and Pikefin had been padding after each other for as long as I could remember, and had finally become mates a few moons ago. They were one of the few pairs of mates that I knew truly loved each other.

But Flowerpetal's lips twisted into a frown. "Not good, I'm afraid. She was complaining about her stomach hurting all morning, and she still doesn't have the strength to leave her nest. It's not a good sign that she's already having difficulty so early in her pregnancy."

I blinked symphethically. "Poor Softsky, she's the sweetest cat in RiverClan. And I bet Pikefin is beside himself with worry."

My mother blew out a sigh. " _That tom_. With the way he's acting, you'd think Softsky had contracted blackcough."

"He loves her," I meowed.

Flowerpetal smiled down at me, features soft. "That he does. They're some of the lucky ones."

It was true. It wasn't often that RiverClan cats became mates because they loved each other; more often than not, it was to protect themselves. Dark Forest warriors wouldn't harm queens unless it was to punish someone, because they were the ones who produced apprentices for The Culling. Toms who sired litters were less valuable, but more so than those who didn't. If a Dark Forest warrior decided to take their anger out on a random cat, or kill a cat to prove a point, they usually picked a cat who wasn't raising kits.

In RiverClan, love didn't factor into choosing a mate. My own father and mother - Breezestep and Flowerpetal - didn't love each other. They cared about each other and shared a bond that was special between them, and they loved me and Springpaw dearly, but they weren't in love with each other.

Sometimes the realization hurt to think about: that I was conceived so that two cats could feel safe, and not because they genuinely wanted to raise a litter together. I tried not to dwell on it.

Shaking my head to clear my mind, I asked, "So Softsky isn't feeling well. Isn't there anything Bumblehive can give her?"

But Flowerpetal shook her head. "No, nothing that won't harm the kits. There _are_ herbs that could help her, but they don't grow in our territory."

"There isn't _anything_ we can do to help her?"

The dark cream she-cat purred quietly and nuzzled my cheek. "Oh Brightpaw, always so desperate to help others. Don't worry about Softsky; she's small, but she's tough. And queens have been birthing kits longer than the Clans have been established. She'll be fine."

"Yeah, you're right," I meowed, mustering a smile that I hope hid my uncertainty.

 **Written in the Shadows**

I always dreaded the evening, when the sun set behind the mountains and the Dark Forest patrols stopped by.

 _Just one day,_ I thought wistfully. _Just one day, I wish they wouldn't come by. The Clan is always on edge after they leave, and when they're here the tension is sickening._

Wishful thinking on my behalf; after the last rebellion, the Dark Forest would never allow us any slack again. They learned their lesson, and wouldn't make that same mistake anytime soon. Although, inwardly, I didn't think they had much to worry about; they'd broken the Clans' spirit too much for them to considering rebelling again.

When the patrol strutted into camp, everyone stiffened. Tension filled the air, so thick my claws could have sliced through it. My eyes immediately scanned the patrol, looking for anyone who was once RiverClan. I breathed a small sigh of relief when none of them looked familiar; it was especially painful to see a former Clanmate, and realize that the Dark Forest had managed to sink their claws into them and transform them into another one of their monsters. There was no greater dishonor, in my opinion.

"Hollowgaze!" Pikefin greeted the leader of the patrol, his voice enthusiastic; like he was being reunited with a long-lost friend.

"Pikefin," the brown tom returned, his voice just as dull as his gaze. Behind him, the other members of his patrol shifted and exchanged smirks. I had a feeling that warriors fought to patrol RiverClan, fore we always welcomed them and never gave them any trouble.

I noticed a younger cat lingering in the back of the patrol. He was a dark gray tom, with a hard face and that trademark Dark Forest gleam in his eyes. My heart sunk to the pits of my stomach when I realized he must have been an apprentice, and was reminded that The Culling was only a short while away…

"-offer you some prey?" Pikefin was saying, gesturing to our measly fresh-kill pile.

One of the patrol members snorted in disgust. "We don't want your stinky fish," he growled.

"Get on with your report," Hollowgaze meowed.

Our Clan leader dipped his head. "Of course. Prey is still swimming strongly, but they'll retreat in a couple moons. One of our queens, Squeaksong, is due to kit any day now. And," he paused, "there have been no hints of rebellion."

"Good," Hollowgaze murmured. His dull gaze swept over us, and I shivered when it ghosted over me. "Is that all you have to report?"

I didn't expect Pikefin to hesitate and then meow, "actually, there is something else. One of our queens, my mate, is sick. We can't give her the herbs she needs because they do not grow in our territory." He inhaled a breath, then asked, "I was wondering if you could spare us the necessary herbs?"

My breath hitched in my throat. I felt Springpaw stiffen beside me.

In the other Clans it was dangerous to even make eye-contact with a Dark Forest warrior. Speaking to them meant you had a death wish, but RiverClan could get away with that much. But… asking them for something? It was _suicidal_.

One of the patrol members, a white tom with brown paws and ferocity burning in his green eyes, stepped forward. "You dare make demands of us?" he snarled.

"Not demands!" Pikefin was quick to protest. "Just-"

Hollowgaze raised his tail for silence. "You said she's your mate?"

Pikefin nodded feverishly. "Y-yes, and otherwise she's completely healthy, but-"

"Bring her out to us."

"S-she can't w-walk," Pikestar whimpered, and even from where I sat I realized he was trembling. "She's very weak-"

"Onestrike," Hollowgaze meowed, his voice still void of any emotion, "fetch her for us."

Onestrike was the brown-pawed tom. He smirked and I caught sight of his sharp fangs, and I thought I would be sick. He didn't verbally respond, instead he marched straight into the Nursery. I clenched my eyes shut when I heard queens gasp and kits whimper and squeak fearfully.

He emerged a few moments later, dragging Softsky behind him. _I'm going to throw up,_ I thought queasily, unable to look away from the sight. Softsky's blue eyes were wide with terror; she was shaking from head to tail.

"Oh no," Springpaw whimpered, "they're going to _kill_ her!"

"But she's pregnant," I hissed back. "Surely she's more valuable alive?"

Springpaw squeezed her eyes shut. "To the Dark Forest, proving a point is more important than anything else."

 _She's right._ She was so right. Softsky was going to die.

Onestrike looked at Pikefin. "You said that she's healthy, otherwise?"

Pikefin simply nodded.

Onestrike looked down at Softsky, that wicked smirk of his making a reappearance. "Cute little thing," he remarked. "I see why you chose her."

Softsky narrowed her eyes and growled, clearly attempting a show of bravery. Her display was short-lived when Onestrike placed a paw on her throat, cutting her air off. I heard Pikefin's breath hitch when Onestrike snarled, "Watch it, Clan-scum! One slash here and you'll bleed out into your rivers."

Hollowgaze turned to look at Pikefin. "We'll help her."

 _What?_

"What?" The Dark Forest apprentice echoed, clearly thrown off guard. They didn't typically spare Clan lives.

"You will?" Pikefin breathed, disbelief and hope clashing in his eyes. "Thank you so much! You won't regret this, I promise! When can we meet you to collect the herbs?"

"We're not giving you the herbs."

My Clan leader blinked, confused. "I don't understand. You said-"

"We're taking her back to camp with us. She's going to serve as one of our queens."

Pikefin's expression broke, and that was the moment I realized that some punishments were worse than death.

Hollowgaze continued, that same dull gleam in his eyes. "We've recently had a queen die while kiting. Softsky will replace her."

"Good riddance," that apprentice mumbled. "Splashtail was a thorn in my side anyways."

"B-but this is _my mate_ we're talking about," Pikefin stammered. "She's expecting _my kits_! You can't just take her!"

One of the patrol members snarled, "wanna bet?"

"You've got a lot of nerve, Pikefin," Onestrike growled. "Asking us for our help, and then protesting when we give it to you. You're lucky I haven't already slit her throat."

" _Pikefin_ ," Softsky whimpered fearfully. The gleam in her eyes killed me; she wanted her mate to fight for her; to save her.

Hollowgaze shrugged. "If you don't want us to take her, Pikefin just say the word." It was a trap.

It was a trap and Pikefin knew it. His eyes flickered from his mate, to Onestrike, and then to Hollowgaze. "I-"

"We'll understand if you want to keep her," Hollowgaze continued, in that same monotone drone that made my fur stand on end. "She is carrying your kits, after all. And I'm sure you love her very much." With every word he took a step closer to Pikefin, until he was only inches away from his face. He was intimidating him.

"So," he started, "what's it going to be?"

Pikefin held his gaze for a few shaky seconds, and then he lowered it submissively. "Take her," he croaked.

" _Pikefin, no_!" Softsky screeched, writhing underneath Onestrike's grip. "Don't let them take me!"

"Don't worry, Clan-scum," Onestrike smirked. "We'll take good care of you."

Softsky cried and begged but it was no use. Hollowgaze and the other patrol member loaded Softsky onto Onestrike's back easily. Tears slipped down my face as the brown-pawed warrior departed from camp, Softsky's unrelenting cries echoing behind them.

 _What kind of world do we live in?_

Hollowgaze looked at Pikefin. "You made the wise choice. We would have killed her otherwise."

Pikefin swallowed, unshed tears welling in his eyes. "Just… promise me you won't hurt her?"

Hollowgaze stared at him for a few heartbeats, eyes empty and face blank. He didn't utter a breath when he started towards the camp exit, but he kinked his tail over his back and that spoke volumes. Without hesitation the third patrol member and the apprentice leapt into action, corning Pikefin and taking turns lashing out at him. Crimson blood soaked his pelt within seconds. Springpaw gasped in horror and beside her, Hollypaw bent over and began retching.

I closed my eyes and focused on breathing. _First they steal Softsky and now they're toying with Pikefin. This is too much._ And yet, it was just another day in the life of the Clans.

Almost as soon as they descended upon him, the Dark Forest cats drew back. The warrior spit in Pikefin's face while the apprentice kicked a pawful of sand into his eyes. They hissed and hurled insults that made my stomach clench, but Pikefin didn't respond at all. Instead he remained seated, fur matted with his own blood and his head hung in sorrow.

The warrior glared at Pikefin with unmasked disgust. "You're a disgrace," he snarled.

"Clawstick," the apprentice mumbled, "we gotta catch up with the others."

"Fine," the warrior, Clawstick, meowed coldly. "We're done here anyways." His brown eyes swept over the Clan. "RiverClan used to be the Clan of pride and grace. Now you eagerly lick the paws of those who stole everything from you." He scoffed, "disgusting."

 _It's all your fault!_ I wanted to screech. _We would fight back if you hadn't of broken us!_

The duo turned around and sauntered out of camp, not even bothering to peer suspiciously behind them. They didn't fear us.

There was dead silence after they left. No one dared to breathe a word. All eyes were on our leader.

For a pawful of heartbeats that felt like an eternity, Pikefin didn't move. He didn't flick his tail or lift his head or lick his wounds. He remained frozen.

And then he broke.

He crumbled to the ground and began sobbing, and then he released the most heartbreaking wail I'd ever heard before. It bled of longing and sorrow and jagged with grief. It made my fur stand on end and sent shivers down my spine.

I clenched my eyes shut and barely contained my own sob. _I hate this. I hate this, I hate this, I hate this!_

"This is why we do it."

Tears fell from my eyes when I glanced at Springpaw. "What?"

"This is why we become mates with cats we don't love," she murmured softly, gaze fixed on Pikefin. "Because the Dark Forest already rules over us so obsessively that if you give them any sort of means to torture you, they'll take it." She shook her head. "They already make us miserable without stealing our most loved ones. Why would we give them that weapon as well?"

 _Because sometimes they don't, and something real is worth the risk,_ I wanted to protest. But staring at Pikefin and his grieving form, as if the Dark Forest had killed Softsky right there in front of him, I couldn't bring myself to utter the words.

One thing was for sure: the Dark Forest had undoubtedly made their point.

Even in RiverClan,

Even as a queen,

No one was safe.

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **Now that you've met the three apprentices, who do you like the most?!**

 **I know it's still early, I just want to hear your thoughts :)**

* * *

 **Annd, now you've officially met our three main characters! Of course we still have A TON of characters to meet, but these are the three who will tell our story.** **These two POVs were a lot of fun to write, and they flowed much easier than the previous two chapters! I hope that sticks around!**

 **Someone commented that they were surprised I've been updating so frequently, and today I actually have a reason! Tomorrow is my birthday (I'll be 19! Whoo!) so this early update is sorta a gift from me to you guys :) If you feel like 'giving me a gift' it would be amazing to break 20 reviews this chapter... but that's just a thought ;)**

 **Next, last chapter I asked you guys what you thought The Culling was, and the first person to correctly guess it was Amberstorm233! She actually went into deep detail and her accuracy made my eyes widen in surprise, so if you want a better understanding of The Culling go and read her review of chapter two!**

 **One reviewer (Snowfall16) remarked that they missed the review replies - so have I! The problem is each chapter averages roughly 10-12 reviews (which is actually not a problem - it's definitely a blessing! I love all of you!) and replying to each one is more time consuming than you would think. But interacting with reviewers is always a lot of fun, so from now on I'm going to choose two or three reviews to reply to (publicly) on each chapter!**

 **WarriorsErin - Thank you so much! You're right, The Culling gives this fic that Hunger Games-y vibe, but I did try to put some spins on it so I'm glad that you think WitS is a refreshing idea :) I haven't seen many 'the Dark Forest won' AUs as of late, but they were very popular after the release of The Last Hope. I read a few of them but they were all so similar, and it was clear that most were just copycat ideas of each other. So! Yes! Very relived that you think this fic is refreshing :)**

 **A Warrior at Heart - A few people have mentioned that they enjoy Flamepaw's backstory, so it's definitely a relief that it's going over so well! The whole 'my Clan hates me for some reason' plotline has been so overused that I really debated on incorporating it into WitS, but it was apart of Flamepaw since my earliest drafts and made too much sense to rewrite! As for your question ("** **One question, though, is there any reason you didn't include a main character from WindClan, but the three others?"), I DO have a reason. The main one is that I'm not brave enough to juggle four POVs at once (I did that for my other fic, The Impossible Life of a SkyClan warrior, and it makes chapters significantly longer and thus, updates are slower). But there's a plot purpose as well! I can't revel just why WindClan wasn't included as a main POV because it would spoil some things, but rest assured, WindClan does play a huge role in this fic :)**

 **Snowfall16 - Haha, as you can see, I missed the review replies as well :) I think a main reason I stopped is because it made the ANs soooo much longer, but replying to only two or three shouldn't be too bad. Thanks for mentioning it, and for your constant support on my fics! You've absolutely become a user whose reviews I look forward too!**

 **Thank you to _everyone_ who reads and reviews WitS - your support means the world to me, and is the reason I've been able to update once a week since publishing this fic.**


	4. Sunfrost, the- Wait, What?

_"They're also going to have guides to help them mature, and I hope that that also shows readers how much they need to develop... I'm trying to give them someone who will come down harshly on their biggest flaws." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 6, 2015_

* * *

 **Chapter Three: Sunfrost, the... Wait, What?**

* * *

 **Flamepaw**

Death was commonplace in the Clans now, but that didn't mean we handled it gracefully.

Adderpaw spat at anyone who glanced at him.

Echopaw disappeared into the Apprentice Den whenever dusk rolled around.

Jumpfoot performed his duties without missing a beat, but he hadn't breathed a word since the Dark Forest strolled into camp and reminded us what happened when we disobeyed their rules.

I gave Jumpfoot and Adderpaw some space, but every time I noticed Echopaw sulking in a corner I almost approached her. She smiled at me a few days ago, the least I could do was attempt to cheer her up. But every time our eyes met she quickly looked away, and I didn't have the heart to soil her in her Clanmates eyes.

So I spent most of my time outside of camp, practicing my hunting skills and battle moves. I made a point to pass Rowanpaw's burial spot everyday and utter "good morning". It was ridiculous but it helped soothe my mind; if Rowanpaw's spirit was hanging around somewhere, maybe he wouldn't feel so lonely.

At that moment I was slinking through the territory, following the mouth-watering scent of squirrel. There was a certain squirrel that had alluded me all morning long, and I was determined to catch it. I thought I had it cornered when it darted up a tall oak tree and its' bushy tail disappeared into a cluster of faded-green leaves, and I couldn't help but smirk victoriously. "You're all mine," I muttered to myself. Then I started climbing after it.

When I finally reached the branch, I paused. The squirrel was just… sitting there, staring at me; like it was _waiting_ for me.

It chattered noisily at me, and I got the distinct feeling it was _mocking me_.

I frowned and announced, "I get enough of that from my own Clan, I'm not about to take it from prey too!"

I started padding across the branch, each pawstep bringing me closer to the peculiar squirrel. _Almost there, just a few more steps…_ The squirrel continued to chatter loudly, and maybe I should have been suspicious when it didn't move an inch, but I shrugged any concerns off; if this squirrel was too mouse-brained to run for its' life, I wasn't going to complain.

Except, this squirrel must have the same quelms with running away that I did, because right after I crouched down to spring and pounce, it screeched and launched itself at my face.

I would like to say that I got my jaws around its' neck and bit down, but when you're being attacked by a furry mass of teeth and razor sharp claws, you tend to panic and do mouse-brained things. I, for example, yowled and shook myself until I lost my balance and went plunging down below.

The last thought I remember having was that _death-by-squirrel-ambush_ was the lamest death ever.

Then I collided with the solid dirt and everything faded to black.

 **Written in the Shadows**

 _I didn't expect to ever open my eyes again, but that was exactly what I did just a heartbeat later. I also figured that I should have some sort of bruise or wound to show for my fall, at least some pain, but there was nothing. It was like I never fell._

 _I frowned as I examined my surroundings. I was still in ThunderClan territory, but somehow everything looked - no,_ _felt_ _different. Like I was here, but… not really._

" _Maybe I have a head wound," I muttered aloud, despite not having a single ache. "Or maybe that squirrel had rabies…"_

" _Or maybe a StarClan warrior is trying to reach out to you."_

" _Nah," I said as I shook out my ginger pelt. "StarClan is dead, everyone knows that."_

 _From behind me, a voice cleared its' throat._

 _I spun around so fast I nearly toppled over again._

" _Careful," the speaker childed me. He was a tom who wore his ginger pelt like the sun itself, and even though he smiled kindly at me I thought he was trying to cage his laughter. "You haven't recovered from your fall_ _just_ _yet_ _."_

 _Shame immediately flooded my being, from my head to my tail-tip. "You saw that?" I asked. Before the stranger could respond, I remembered that he was a stranger. "Wait a second, who are you and what are you doing on ThunderClan territory?!"_

 _The tom nodded. "Right, I suppose introductions are in order. My name is Sunfrost, and I'm a warrior of StarClan. Or, what's left of StarClan, anyway."_

 _I narrowed my green eyes suspiciously. "Oh yeah? Prove it."_

' _Sunfrost' raised a single paw, and I realized that it sparkled with tiny specks of stardust. And now that I studied him, I realized that his_ _entire_ _body_ _shimmered with stardust._

 _My breath hitched in my throat. "Oh my goodness, you're a StarClan warrior."_

" _Would you mind to say 'oh my StarClan' next time? Remembering our legacy is what keeps us alive, and it would help if-"_

 _I lunged for the StarClan warrior, claws extended and-_

 _-and sailed right over his head and landed on my back. For some reason, that hurt much worse than falling out of a tree._

 _Sunfrost towered above me and frowned, unimpressed. "Flamepaw, we have important matters to discuss and very little time to do so. I need you to focus."_

 _I rolled onto my paws and stared at the shiny tom. "How-" I paused and gathered my thoughts, inhaled a steadying breath, and then said, "they told me StarClan was dead. I mean, it wouldn't be the first time someone has lied to me, but_ _everyone_ _believes that. How are you here with me?"_

 _Sunfrost was silent for a heartbeat, then gestured for me to follow him. I trotted to his side and he led me throughout the forest, as if he knew it personally. "StarClan are not dead, but we might as well be. We're only held together thanks to those who still believe in us and prey to us. However, those few cats aren't enough to sustain us for much longer."_

" _So, do cats still go to StarClan when they die?"_

 _Sunfrost shrugged his shoulders. "It depends on who they're remembered by. If a kit dies than they're remembered by their parents, but no one else. Very soon that kit's spirit fades into nothing. Meanwhile, if a Clan leader or deputy die, they're remembered by an entire Clan and thus, remain in StarClan until the last cat stops thinking of them."_

" _Sooo as long as at least one cat is thinking of them, their spirit lives in StarClan."_

 _Sunfrost nodded. "Essentially, yes. But so many cats are killed every moon that," he heaved a heavy sigh, "their Clanmates find it easier to forget about them, rather than remember."_

 _He led me deeper into the territory, and I realized that we were nearing the edge of the border. Dark Forest warriors could be lurking in the shadows, but I found that I wasn't worried about them; it was hard to worry about the Dark Forest when I walked alongside a StarClan warrior. "StarClan must be small then, huh?"_

 _Sadness entered Sunfrost's blue eyes, and I regretted asking the question. "Incredibly small, yes. Seasons ago, before the Dark Forest's reign, we were much larger. StarClan held generations of warriors, leaders, kits, and those in the living thought of us every single day. It was like being surrounded by kin."_

 _Something wistful tugged at my heart. "It sounds amazing."_

" _It was perfect," Sunfrost agreed. "Cats were never hungry, never lonely, never suffered, never faded…" the bright ginger tom trailed off, and I wondered how many loved ones he'd watch fade into nothingness._

" _I guess the Dark Forest really did ruin everything," I mused quietly. "Now StarClan will be dead soon."_

" _Well, there_ _is_ _hope." I blinked, confused, and looked to the sun-pelted warrior. He wasn't looking at me, but something far off in the distance. "Flamepaw, let me ask you a question: if there was something you could do to restore StarClan, would you do it?"_

" _Of course," I responded immediately._

" _Good. In that case, I need you to infiltrate the Dark Forest and tear it down from the inside out, all while preaching that StarClan is still alive."_

" _... hold on, when I said_ _anything_ _-"_

" _I know it's a lot to ask of you," Sunfrost interrupted me, "and trust me, I wish it didn't come to this. But you're the only chance we have, Flamepaw."_

" _Me_ _?" I echoed._

 _The StarClan warrior nodded. "The Dark Forest are thriving and growing stronger than ever before, and it won't be long until they're unstoppable. If their reign should ever come to an end, it must be_ _now_ _."_

 _I shook my head and wondered if this was all just a bad dream, or a side effect of the rabies. "O-okay, say that I went along with this… just how am I supposed to infiltrate the Dark Forest?"_

" _The Culling, of course."_

 _Oh, right. Of course._

 _Thank you, but no._

" _I have to decline your offer."_

 _Sunfrost narrowed his blue eyes. "Do you want the Dark Forest's terinichary to rule forever?"_

" _No! But-"_

" _Then this is the only way to end them," the tom meowed, and he spoke with such confidence that I really believed him. "Spirits are fading rapidly from StarClan, and it won't be long until every cat has given up on us and we are gone for good. Once StarClan is dead, the Dark Forest will rise in power, and things will only get worse."_

 _For the first time in my life, I truly couldn't think of anything to say. Urgency gleamed in Sunfrost's deep blue eyes, and- and he was a_ _StarClan_ _warrior_ _, for crying out loud! And he wanted_ _my_ _help! How messed up was that?!_

 _Finally I broke my silence and simply asked, "why me?"_

 _Slowly, a smile returned to Sunfrost's lips. "Because you're special, Flamepaw. You've been special since the day you were born."_

 _I scoffed and lowered my gaze. "That's hilarious. I've never been anything special. My own Clan wishes I were dead!"_

 _The bright ginger tom sat down beside me, and when our pelts brushed a sense of peace washed over me. Without thinking, I leaned against him and squeezed my eyes shut. "The Dark Forest left you to die, and yet you only grew stronger," Sunfrost murmured in my ear. "Perhaps ThunderClan can't see past your parents' mistakes, but I can. You're a fighter, and a fighter is exactly what the Clans need right now - more so now than ever."_

 _For a while, there was silence. Every word that Sunfrost uttered echoed in my mind. Something inside of me caught fire, and it was slowly spreading across my body until- until I really believed him._

 _He thought that I was special. He thought that I could end the Dark Forest's reign of misery and bring peace to the Clans, and my own Clan thought that I was worse than crowfood, so… I had nothing to lose, and everything to prove._

" _I'll do it," I finally meowed, and my voice was much more solid than I felt. "There's just one problem: I don't see how I could do it by myself."_

 _Sunfrost shook his head. "No, of course you can't. That's why I've selected two other apprentices to accompany you on your quest: Brightpaw and Sleetpaw."_

 _I frowned. "I've never heard of them."_

" _Brightpaw is a RiverClan she-cat, and Sleetpaw is a ShadowClan tom. They're very different from you, but similar in the most important ways; they're fearless, just like you."_

 _I couldn't help but laugh, and my voice was hollow when I replied, "I'm not fearless, Sunfrost."_

 _He smiled and nudged my shoulder. "When the time comes, you will be."_

 _Eventually the sun-pelted tom stood to his paws and said, "it's time for you to return to camp. The Dark Forest patrols will be arriving soon, and besides," he smirked, "you need to think of an excuse for your absence. Somehow I don't think "a squirrel attacked me and knocked me out of a tree and I met a StarClan warrior" will go over very well."_

 _I cringed; he was right. "It's almost like you know ThunderClan." I looked up and him and tilted my head to the side. "Did you…" I trailed off and cleared my throat. "You mentioned my parents earlier. Did you know them?"_

 _Silence, and then, "yes. I was very close to them."_

 _My heart started racing; he knew them? "What were their names? What did they look like? Are they watching over me?" The questions tumbled out of my mouth in a rush, but I didn't care. Finally, someone who would tell me about my parents!_

 _But when Sunfrost heaved a heavy sigh, I knew I wouldn't be getting any answers today. "Flamepaw, I… I wish I could tell you about your parents, but what they did for the Clans…" he paused. "Before them, more cats believed in StarClan, but after The Massacre they stopped believing. No one could imagine how StarClan could still be alive and allow such a tragedy to happen. I'm afraid all of StarClan blame your parents for the situation that we're in now."_

 _I blinked back the mouse-brained tears that welled in my eyes; I wasn't a kit anymore, I shouldn't cry over cats I never even met! But even so, I couldn't stop myself from croaking, "you can't even tell me their names?"_

 _Sunfrost shook his head, and I thought he seemed truly regretful. "StarClan have forbidden it."_

 _Something desperate started burning in my stomach, and suddenly it was hard to even breathe. I tried to push back my tears but they rolled freely down my face. I never thought I would meet my parents, I didn't even believe in StarClan until today, but I couldn't help-... some part of me always quietly_ _hoped_ _that one day-_

" _They're faded, aren't they?"_

 _When Sunfrost refused to look me in the eye, refused to utter a single word, I had my answer._

 _The yowl I didn't even know I'd been caging suddenly broke free. It was horse and broken and jagged with grief, and it brought me to my knees._

I don't know how long I stayed like that, bent over in grief and breathing like I was starving for air. But eventually I picked myself up and looked to Sunfrost, only to find that he was gone. I looked around the territory and realized that everything looked normal - wherever Sunfrost had taken me, I was back with the living again.

I inhaled a gulp of air, then exhaled it slowly. StarClan still existed; I agreed to work as a spy inside the Dark Forest; it was my responsibility to restore StarClan to their former glory; my only help would come from two strangers, and… and my parents were gone forever.

What did I sign myself up for?

 **Written in the Shadows**

 **Brightpaw**

Wake up. Eat. Groom.

Patrol. Train. Be the Best.

The Dark Forest Patrols.

Eat. Sleep. Wake up.

Repeat.

 _I swear, sooner or later I'm going to go insane_ , I thought to myself.

At that moment I was training with my mentor, Frogspots, and Springpaw and her mentor, Boulderfur. We were supposed to be fishing, but at some point Pebblefall had shown up and now he and Springpaw were splashing in the rivers. I watched them for a few moments, annoyed by their flirting. Not only were they scaring off all the fish, but they looked like lovesick fish-brains!

" _Pebblefall is so stuck-up, it's ridiculous!" Springpaw exclaimed. "He was an apprentice too, just a couple moons ago, but now he prances around like he's a Clan leader!"_

" _He's always been haughty," I replied. "I don't think he's changed all that much."_

 _Springpaw huffed. "Well, if he doesn't gain some humility soon, no she-cat is going to pair up with him!"_

That was a moon ago. Now my sister looked at Pebblefall like he was her saving grace; in a sense, maybe she thought he was.

"What's the matter, Brightpaw?" Frogspots asked, coming to my side. "You look distracted."

I gave my head a quick shake, then returned my attention to the river. "Just thinking, that's all."

"Ahh, about The Culling?" my mentor asked, sympathy in his voice.

 _Well, I wasn't, but I sure am now._ "It's just so soon," I meowed softly. "What am I going to do if they choose me?"

Usually I wouldn't have to worry; the Dark Forest thought that she-cats were worthless as warriors, so they only selected them at The Culling when they needed queens to produce kits. I'd never seen them take a she-cat from RiverClan, but… this leaf-fall, there were no tom apprentices. Maybe they would force a warrior to return with them, then, but I had the feeling that wouldn't be the case.

I wanted to be a warrior with everything in me, but I would rather slit my own throat than serve the Dark Forest. I hoped that they would sense this in me and choose another she-cat, one who _wanted_ to be a queen, but…

My eyes fell on Springpaw. _What if they take my sister from me?_

At least I count depend on myself in the Dark Forest. I was strong enough to endure their fish-brained training, but they would break Springpaw. She wouldn't make it two moons with them. Perhaps they would let her simply become a queen, but the Dark Forest valued strength and power over everything else - if you were too weak to protect yourself, were you worth valuable fresh-kill?

 _I realized that Frogspots never answered my question, so I turned to look at my mentor and ask him again, only to find that he was gone. I blinked and looked back at Springpaw, and nearly screeched when she was gone too! Frogspots, Springpaw, Pebblefall, Boulderfur… where did they go?!_

" _Frogspots?" I called out, taken back when my voice didn't echo throughout the territory. "Springpaw? Springpaw!"_

" _They can't hear you."_

 _I spun around and yelped when I was greeted by a stranger: a light ginger tabby tom with blue eyes that, one anyone else, would have seemed cold. Somehow though, I knew that this tom was the farthest thing from cold._

" _Who are you?" I asked wearily. "And where_ _am_ _I_ _?"_

 _The tom smiled warmly at me. "My name is Sunfrost-" well, that was fitting, "-and this is StarClan… sorta."_

' _StarClan. Sureeeee.' I nearly scoffed until something in the tom's pelt caught my eye: a tiny, shimmering star. Once I noticed that star I started picking them out all over the tom's body; it was like was like his pelt held the entire silverpelt!_

 _My head shot up and I locked gazes with the… the_ _StarClan_ _warrior_ _. "You're serious," I breathed. "You're actually a- a StarClan warrior?!"_

 _Sunfrost nodded and grinned, like my reaction was amusing. "Well, you were much easier to convince than Flamepaw," he remarked. "Come, follow me. We have much to discuss."_

 _I never thought I would willingly obey a strange tom, but I also never considered that tom would be a StarClan warrior. I followed him without question._

" _I thought StarClan was dead," I meowed. "Flowerpetal told me stories about them, but she said after The Massacre there was no way they could still be alive."_

 _Sunfrost didn't immediately respond, and I got the impression that he was choosing his explanation carefully. "StarClan has never truly been dead. As long as there are cats to think of us, we exist. However, after The Massacre, many cats thought we were gone for good." The light ginger tom weaved around reedbeds and rivers, and I wondered how he knew my territory so well. Maybe he was RiverClan? "StarClan has been fading ever since the Dark Forest took over and forbid our name, but there were always those who prayed to us in secret. After The Massacre, they stopped."_

 _Sunfrost leapt over a mossy log and I followed him. "So StarClan still exists, but not for much longer?" I summarized._

 _He nodded. "Exactly. And that's why I've brought you here: Brightpaw, I need your help."_

" _Oh," I blinked, caught off guard. "Um, sure! Whatever you need, I would be honored to help you!"_

 _Sunfrost glanced at me. "Even if it meant being chosen for The Culling?"_

 _I stopped walking, and my heart stopped beating. "The Culling?" I echoed, and I hated the fear that crept into my voice. "You want me to become a Dark Forest warrior?"_

 _The blue-eyed tom gazed at me with genuine sympathy in his eyes. "In a sense, yes, but it isn't that simple. I want you to go to the Dark Forest as a_ _spy_ _."_

" _You want me to tear down the Dark Forest from the inside out," I meowed, slowly catching on. "And now that I know StarClan exists, I can keep you alive in my memory."_

 _A smile played across Sunfrost's lips, and he gazed at me with a warmness that I felt from my nose to the tip of my tail. "You catch on quickly," he praised me._

 _I couldn't help but return his smile, although mine was considerably less sure. "Thank you. But… this sounds like an awful lot of work for one apprentice. How am I supposed to do it all by myself?"_

" _You're not," came his response. He stopped in front of a pool and tapped the waters with his claw. I gasped in awe when the water began to shimmer, and then a face appeared: a ginger tom with amber eyes. "This is Flamepaw of ThunderClan, and I need you to accompany him on his journey."_

 _I frowned. "His journey?" I echoed. "You mean, like a sidekick?"_

 _Sunfrost shook his head. "No, of course not! I wouldn't have chosen you for such a quest unless I needed to, and you possess a certain mindset that these toms will depend on."_

" _Toms? There are more?"_

" _One more," Sunfrost confirmed._

 _He tapped the pool again, and this time I regorginized the face. "That's Sleetpaw of ShadowClan!" I exclaimed, and I couldn't help but blush when Sunfrost fixed me with a curious look._

" _Yes, it is. He's the third member of your trio." I was supposed to go on a quest with_ _Sleetpaw_ _? I could already feel my heart begin to race just thinking about it!_

" _So then, I'm not going just to take care of the toms… we're going to work as a team?" I asked, looking to Sunfrost for confirmation. "We're… we would all be equal, right?"_

 _I had obvious reasons for asking about equality. The Clans didn't respect she-cats for their warrior abilities like they did toms, and the Dark Forest all but dismissed them. My own parents thought I was fish-brained for choosing to serve as a warrior rather than a queen! If I went on this quest, I refused to be treated as lesser just because I wasn't a tom._

 _I know Sunfrost sensed my concerns, because he gave me the warmest smile I'd ever seen on a warrior. He laid his chin on my head, and a sense of peace flooded my entire being. I couldn't help but purr softly as he meowed, "Brightpaw, the most brilliant cats I ever knew were she-cats. No matter what others may say, I have every confidence in you."_

 _It was incredible, the effect this StarClan tom had on me. I wondered if there was something about StarClan warriors or if Sunfrost was just the most genuine, confident cat to ever exist. Whatever the reason, at that moment, I had more faith in myself than ever before._

" _Okay," I found myself murmuring. "I'll go on your quest, Sunfrost."_

 _The sun-pelted, blue-eyed warrior pulled away and fixed me with a brilliant grin. "You'll see, Brightpaw," he meowed. "The next few moons will be the most difficult moons of your life, but one day you'll look back and you won't regret this decision."_

 _I swallowed and mustered a smile. "I hope not."_

" _Flamepaw and Sleetpaw will be with you every step of the way," he added, even as his figure began to fade away._

 _My eyes widened. "Wait a moment, how will I talk to them? We're in different Clans!"_

" _Meet with them two nights from now," Sunfrost meowed. "Disguise your scent and meet on the old Gathering Island! They'll be waiting… for… you…" and then he was faded completely, merely a whisp in the air._

Suddenly my surroundings came into focus; I could see the ripples the river, the colorful pebbles that glistened underneath the surface. Just across the river, Springpaw and Pebblefall were splashing each other with pawfuls of cool water.

"Ahh, about The Culling?" Frogspots asked, distracting my attention. I looked to him and saw sympathy darken his green eyes; he had no idea how much time had passed, or that I had just met a StarClan warrior. "You're worried about it, aren't you?"

"Actually…" I trailed off, then found my voice again. "Actually, if I _wanted_ to be chosen for The Culling... how would I got about that?"

 **Written in the Shadows**

 **Sleetpaw**

 _I didn't dream._

 _When I closed my eyes I sometimes endured flashbacks of a pitiful past; of a kit that didn't know how to defend himself, or who to trust. Sometimes I closed my eyes and everything was simply dark until I opened them again._

 _I didn't dream ridiculous scenarios, and I most certainly didn't dream of blindingly-bright orange StarClan warriors. That was why, when I opened my eyes and came face to face with said warrior, I didn't question who he was._

 _He had stars_ _in his pelt, for Tigerstar's sake! Only a complete lizard-brain would waste their breath demanding to know who he was._

 _So instead I asked, "What do you want?"_

 _The ridiculously-orange tom blinked, clearly caught off guard. "Um, I'm a StarClan warrior-"_

 _"_ _Obviously."_

 _"_ _-and my name is Sunfrost." A frown replaced the tom's confused expression. "Wait a moment, what do you mean "obviously_ _"_ _? How do you know I'm a legitimate StarClan warrior and this isn't some strange dream?"_

 _"_ _Because I don't dream," I replied dryly. "Besides, there's no possible way that StarClan is dead. Maybe you're weak and fading, but the Dark Forest is kept alive by their memory so the same must be true for their counterparts. And even if the Dark Forest has forbidden the mention of your name and tried to convince us that you're dead, there will always be those hopelessly optimistic enough to continue believing and praying to you." I shrugged, nonchalant. "As long as those fools still exist, so will StarClan, however weak."_

 _Sunfrost's mouth hung open, absolutely dumbfounded._

 _Inwardly, I smirked. It was easy to stun my Clanmates with my intelligence (they were frustratingly inferior to me anyway) but it wasn't everyday I was able to outwit a genuine StarClan warrior._

 _Suddenly a grin spread across Sunfrost's lips, and the fondness that shone in his eyes made me take a step backwards. "I shouldn't have underestimated you," he remarked happily. "StarClan, you're just like_ _him!"_

 _Any trace of smugness immediately vanished. My ears perked forward and I narrowed my eyes. "You mean Runningpaw?" I demanded. "What do you know of my brother?"_

 _Sunfrost shook his head, unphased. "I wasn't talking about your brother, Sleetpaw. I was talking about your father."_

 _I wanted to be frustrated with the StarClan warrior, but the mention of my father peaked my curiosity. "Stormwind?" I asked._

 _The bright orange tom nodded. "He was one of the most intelligent cats I ever met," he meowed. "It doesn't surprise me that he passed on that gene to his sons." A smirk played across his lips. "He was also incredibly stuck-up, so I suppose that's where you get that as well. Although," he tilted his head to the side and studied my face, "you have your mother's eyes. I believe she got them from her grandfather."_

 _"_ _You're ShadowClan," I remarked. My lineage was no secret, and my parents were not a forbidden topic - I simply didn't discuss them with dim minds. My father and mother were noble heros and I would not soil their memory like that._

 _Sunfrost waved his tail dismissively. "My birth-Clan isn't important. You asked me what I want with you, so let's get straight to the point: I have a quest for you, and-"_

 _"_ _No."_

 _The StarClan warrior raised an eyebrow. "I haven't even told you what I want you to do!"_

 _"_ _I don't care," I meowed, cool and collected. "I've heard tales of StarClan warriors seeking out Clan cats to be their "champions", and I want no part of it. Besides, I have my own interests."_

 _I watched as realization dawned on his features, clear as the sun he was named for. Disapproval was there as well. "When you say "your own interests", you mean murder."_

 _I grunted. There was no point in verifying what we already knew._

 _"_ _You know your obsession with murdering your brother isn't healthy, right?"_

 _"_ _And you're aware that giving a task to an apprentice isn't an wise decision, correct?"_

 _"_ _Sometimes we can't always go with the most intelligent decision." He sat down, his tail swishing placidly behind him. "When you're back into a corner, the wisest option is to submit - your opponent may let you live, but they may also kill you. To continue fighting may be suicidal, but your fate is in your own paws. Which do you chose?"_

 _I narrowed my ice-blue eyes. "I'm no coward," I retorted. "I fight."_

 _"_ _Even if it isn't the 'intelligent' option?"_

 _"_ _I see your point," I countered, "but my decision is final. I don't care for these Clans and I don't care for the Dark Forest. My prerogative is to extract revenge on those who wronged me, and that's it."_

 _Sunfrost studied me for a few heartbeats, and then he asked, "what if my quest helps you to achieve your own_ _interests?" I would be lying if I said that didn't catch my interest. I simply raised an eyebrow in response, and the bright-orange tom continued, "you already know that Runningpaw is with the Dark Forest. I need you to be selected for The Culling, and then work as a spy to destroy the Dark Forest from the inside out." He stared pointedly at me. "Obviously, Dark Forest warriors will need to be killed. If your brother is one of those cats, I wouldn't even blink."_

 _I looked down at my paws and studied them thoughtfully. "I want my brother dead_ _now_ _, and you want me to play a waiting game."_

 _"_ _Believe me, I have no love for the Dark Forest. If you kill Runningpaw the heartbeat you lay eyes on him," he shrugged, "that's just one less Dark Forest warrior to struggle with later. I don't care when or how you kill him, as long as you complete my quest."_

 _If I was a StarClan warrior and I wanted a bitter apprentice to do my bidding, I would blow up my bravado and pretend like we shared common interests; I would shrug and act nonchalant, even as the idea made me wither on the inside._

 _But as I raised my gaze and studied the warrior sitting in front of me, I realized that he wasn't projecting any sort of bravado - he was completely honest._

 _I eyed him with a curiosity that I couldn't contain. "I never thought a StarClan warrior would encourage me to murder my own kin. Aren't you supposed to be the standard for morels and mercy?"_

 _Sunfrost met my gaze without wavering. "The Dark Forest stole everything I loved from me. If I could snap every last one of their necks, I would do so without hesitation." He might as well been chiseled out of solid ice; his voice was strong and cold and dark and steady._

 _Perhaps I had more in common with this StarClan warrior than I'd originally thought._

 _"_ _Alright," I meowed. "I'll complete your quest."_

 _And just like that, Sunfrost's icy exterior melted like snow in the heat of green-leaf. A pleased expression replaced it and he remarked, "excellent! The other two cats you'll be working alongside are-"_

 _"_ _I work alone."_

 _"_ _You'll die alone," he was quick to retort. "If you think you can defeat the entire Dark Forest by yourself then you've already lost. Besides," he went on before I could interrupt, "who will make sure the quest runs smoothly when you plot your own mission?"_

 _I frowned. It was infuriating how he matched me point for point, and how he prevailed in the end. Sunfrost was more calculating than he led on, that much was certain. "Fine," I rumbled. "I'll play by your rules. But only under one condition: I take orders from no one, and I stand in no one's shadow."_

 _Sunfrost nodded crisply. "Of course. I need you three to function as a team, not as individuals."_

 _"_ _I don't work well with others," I warned him._

 _"_ _You'll learn," he replied, clearly not concerned. "Anyway, they're Flamepaw of ThunderClan and Brightpaw of RiverClan."_

 _Well, at least I wouldn't be working with my own pathetic Clanmates. "When do I meet with them?"_

 _"_ _Two nights from now, on the abandoned Gathering Island."_

 _I raised an eyebrow. "You're aware that the Dark Forest posts a guard outside every camp at night, correct?" They posted a guard to ensure that no Clan cats were sneaking out in the cover of night to plot against them; literally for this exact reason. The Dark Forest may be paranoid, but it was not without reason._

 _"_ _I have faith in you," Sunfrost retorted, the hint of a grin on his lips. "I'll contact you soon, Sleetpaw."_

 _"_ _Please don't."_

 _He couldn't hold his grin back any longer, and the way he looked so fondly at me sent an unexpected rush of… something_ _coursing through my veins. "Just like your father," he murmured, and I wanted to ask just how close he had been to Stormwind. I wanted to ask if he knew that, while a powerful warrior, he failed as a father._

 _But before I could get the question out, Sunfrost began to fade away, until I stood alone._

Then I opened my eyes.

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **What are your early thoughts on Sunfrost?**

* * *

 **INTRODUCING, SUNFROST! :D**

 **Sunfrost, like our main trio, has been around since the very first draft, and he's a personal favorite of mine. Originally he was only supposed to be one apprentice's 'StarClan guide', but I decided that having him mentor all three would be less confusing (both for me and you). It also gives him more time in the spotlight, which is a bonus.**

 **I had so much fun writing this chapter, mainly because I loved highlighting the differences in each apprentice's personality/mindset. For example, the three each describe Sunfrost's appearance differently. Flamepaw calls him "sun-pelted" and "bright ginger", and barely glosses over his startling blue eyes; Brightpaw describes him as "** **a light ginger tabby tom with blue eyes that, one anyone else, would have seemed cold" and "blue-eyed tom" - thus, his eyes are what stuck out to her the most, whereas Flamepaw focused on his bright pelt. And Sleetpaw thought he was "blindingly-bright orange" and "ridiculously-orange"... I love Sleetpaw xD However they all make a point to mention that Sunfrost touches them or looks at them a certain way, and it warms them and relaxes them - think of eating a warm, gooey chocolate-chip cookie! (Although Sleetpaw notes a darker side to him.)**

 **It's also much easier to pick apart differences in the three when they all share a chapter. Notice the type of questions they ask or their reaction to meeting a genuine StarClan warrior.** **Anyway, Sunfrost definitely plays a big role in the fic and has his own unique backstory, so expect to see more of him in the future!**

 **I know you all assumed that there would be no StarClan in this fic and found that twist cool, so I hope you're not too disappointed! One of my goals with this fic is to surprise my readers and have those moments that make them go, "wait... what?" With Dawn Frost I feel like everyone guessed every little surprise I had planned, so hopefully I can keep you guessing!**

 **Foreststar of WindClan \- Quite a few people guessed that Runningpaw was the apprentice who visited WindClan, and... I can neither confirm nor deny this ;) As for apprentices, I think I agree with you. Flamepaw is my favorite, although I seem to struggle writing him the most. **

**MarchieBunnie \- Ahhh, such a long review, thank you! I'm so glad that you're enjoying WitS thus far and you mentioned the quality. As for Sleetpaw you're definitely right - he couldn't care less about she-cats xD But I can also confirm that he and Brightpaw ARE slated to meet, so she's going to try and change that! As for warrior names, I definitely have Sleet's picked out, I THINK I have Bright's picked out, and I'm still thinking on Flame's. But I like those suggestions!**

 **Niqhtshadow \- Brightpaw seems to be very popular with you guys, which is a huge relief because I was worried everyone would hate her xDx Sometimes she-cats aren't well received in fics, especially when the whole 'toms are superior' trope is in place, so I'm thrilled that everyone seems to really like her! Yes, I am going to continue the PM quotes, because rereading them and seeing how much this fic has changed is crazy xD I also want to give you guys a peek into all the planning that's gone into this fic because, again, I've been thinking about it for four years. Thank you for the birthday wishes, and have fun being eighteen! It was one of my favorite years :) **


	5. Team Meeting

_"They don't have a prophecy because this is a plan that one cat came up with; it was never supposed to happen, only raising the odds higher against them." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 13, 2015_

* * *

 **Team Meeting**

* * *

 **B** **rightpaw**

The Island wasn't very far away, but every pawstep felt like an eternity. I was careful not to make a single noise, but it was difficult to navigate the unfamiliar land in black cloak of night. I understood why this meeting had to be held in the dead of night, but it certainly didn't ease my paranoia.

I glanced over my shoulder every few steps, terrified that I would come face-to-face with a Dark Forest warrior. There was always a Dark Forest warrior guarding the camp entrance at night to ensure no Clan cats were sneaking off to plot against them (oh, the irony). I'd snuck out through a small gap in the Apprentice Den (a large bush reinforced with bramble thickets) and than swam upstream until I thought I would be safe to walk across land. By this point I could see the lake.

 _It's pretty at night,_ I realized. The Dark Forest made it very clear that leaving camp at night would result in severe punishment, so I'd never seen the lake at night. Despite the anxiety that built within my chest with every pawstep, I couldn't help but pause to gaze at the lake in awe.

For such terrible times, the lake was peaceful. The moon-high breeze stirred the surface every so often and the waves lapped at the sandy shores, and I found myself wanting to watch it all night. The claw-moon was reflected on the lake's surface as well, and was beautiful in a haunting sort of way. _But it's missing something…_ I thought, as a frown played across my lips. _What?_

Stars.

The lake reflected the moon in all it's brightness, but there wasn't a single star. I looked up to the silverpelt and searched the sky, and sadness gripped my heart at the sight. I could pick out some stars, but they were dim and few. Most of the silverpelt was obscured by clouds, effectively hiding any other stars that might have lingered.

Now that I was sure StarClan still existed, the idea that there were so few stars because there were so few StarClan warriors depressed me. Somehow I knew that the silverpelt used to shine brightly with thousands of shimmering stars, and however beautiful the view was right now, it must have been absolutely breathtaking all those seasons ago.

 _But I'm going to do something about it,_ I reminded myself. _This is why I agreed to Sunfrost's quest; to banish the Dark Forest and restore StarClan. One day, I'll be able to come to the lake whenever I want and stargaze all night._

A smile pulled at my lips. It was an encouraging thought, and it fueled the last part of my journey; within minutes, I had arrived at the Island.

I wasn't sure how cats used to cross onto the Island back when Gatherings still took place every moon, so I simply swam. It didn't take very long, and soon I was pulling myself onto shore and shaking out my wet pelt.

"Hello?" I called softly into the darkness. I couldn't scent Sleetpaw or Flamepaw, but that didn't mean they weren't already here. "Hello? Is anyone-"

Suddenly a cat snarled and barreled into me, knocking me completely off of my paws and slamming my head onto the hard ground. I yelped and tried to fight off the warrior, but they already had me pinned. _I'mgoingtodieI'mgoingtodieI'mgoingtodie-!_

"Who goes there?" the cat demanded.

"I-I'm Brightpaw," I stammered. "I'm a RiverClan apprentice, but I was instructed to-"

"Wait a moment, _you're_ Brightpaw?" the cat interrupted me, and as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, a flame-pelted tom with dark green eyes came into vision. Suddenly a grin appeared on his lips. "That means you're here to meet with me! I'm Flamepaw!"

A series of emotions coursed through my body at that. First there was the realization and relief that this was Flamepaw, and not a Dark Forest warrior prepared to slit my throat; then there was excitement, because if he was actually here then that meant my quest was legitimate; and then there was a burst of anger, because I'd just been tackled and scared of out my fur, and now my head was throbbing something fierce because this fish-brained tom attacked me!

"Pleasure to meet you," I meowed dryly. "Now, would you be so kind as to _climb off of me_?"

Flamepaw blinked, as if he'd forgotten that he just attacked me. "Oh, right. Sorry about that!" He continued to ramble as I got to my paws and shook out my pelt. "I had to make sure you weren't a Dark Forest warrior following me, y'know? But I'm sorry about tackling you. And for scaring you. But it's nice to meet you too, Brightpaw! You're much prettier than I expected a RiverClan she-cat to be-"

" _Excuse me_?" I demanded. My head snapped up to glare at the wide-eyed tom. "What is _that_ supposed to me?! "For a RiverClan she-cat"?!"

Flamepaw opened his mouth before closing it again. "I-I didn't mean it like that," he floundered, like a fish out of water. "I just meant that RiverClan's borders always stink, so I figured their warriors wouldn't look very attractive either, y'know?"

"No, I _do not_ know," I retorted harshly. "I didn't ambush _you_ or insult _your Clan_ , did I?"

"I thought you were Dark Forest!" the dark ginger tom cried. "I was just making sure none of their warriors crept onto the Island!"

"There are no Dark Forest warriors on this Island, but if you keep croaking like a bunch of toads then there will be."

Flamepaw and I spun around and there, in all his glory, was Sleetpaw of ShadowClan.

I tried not to swoon.

Flamepaw looked the _devastatingly handsome_ tom up and down, then wrinkled his nose and asked, "Who do you think you are, calling us a bunch of toads?!"

Sleetpaw eyed Flamepaw with about as much interest as a fly. "Guess. If you're Flamepaw, and she's Brightpaw," he gestured towards me, "than who am I?"

The dark-ginger tabby tom narrowed his eyes. "Obviously you're Sleetpaw, but that isn't what I- whatever. How do you know there are no Dark Forest warriors here?"

"Because I scouted the entire perimeter while you were busy flirting with Brightpaw."

Flamepaw growled lowly whereas a dopey-smile spread across my lips. "You know my name," I practically swooned.

Sleetpaw barely spared me a glance. "Of course I do. You announced it to the whole Island just moments ago."

He turned back to Flamepaw and insulted his "lack of grace", and that ensured an argument between the two toms. Meanwhile my heart had dropped so low to the ground, I tried not to step on it. _He doesn't recognize me from patrols?_ I wondered. _We've never spoken, but I always smiled at him! And-and I knew exactly who he was!_

So far tonight, I'd been ambushed by one tom and had my heartbroken by the other tom. Our first meeting was off to an _absolutely brilliant_ start.

"-I could hear you stumbling through the undergrowth like a lopsided badger," Sleetpaw meowed, his voice dripping with disapproval.

"If you were here the whole time than why did you stay hidden?" Flamepaw countered. "I've been waiting for someone to show up for ages!"

"Maybe I didn't want to be ambushed and have my head slammed against the ground," came his retort.

 _We're never going to get anywhere like this._ "Um, I think we should-"

"How was I supposed to know she was an ally?!"

"-we really need to start discussing-"

"You made such a big deal about her RiverClan stench, I'm surprised you didn't scent her first!"

I glowered. First of all, RiverClan cats _did not_ stink, and we- oh, whatever. "Hey!" I snapped, demanding both toms' attention. They finally shut their mouths longer enough for me to meow, "in case you've both forgotten, we're here to discuss our quest!"

Sleetpaw fixed me with a glare. "Who made you leader?" he asked, completely missing my point. For someone oh-so perfect, he sure was stubborn.

"Yeah," Flamepaw agreed, puffing his chest out proudly. "We all know that _I'm_ the leader of this quest."

"There isn't a leader!" I exclaimed.

"Oh yeah?" Flamepaw challenged. "Sunfrost told me that he selected _you two_ to _accompany me_ on _my quest_."

"Well _I_ told Sunfrost that I don't take orders," Sleetpaw retorted and lashed his tail, the only sign of his frustration.

I huffed. "Aren't either of you listening to me? Sunfrost made it very clear that we're supposed to work as a _team_! He told me that we're all equals here."

At the word 'equals', Sleetpaw and Flamepaw both exchanged a knowing glance. "Uh, sure," Flampaw meowed. "We can be… _equal._ "

Sleetpaw grunted.

I glared at them. I knew those fish-brained _toms_ had a problem calling a she-cat their equal, but as long as they didn't make a huge deal out of it then I wouldn't touch the topic. If they did, however, I would show them just how dangerous a scorned she-cat could be.

"Look," I started, "it doesn't matter whose quest this is. I'm sure we all took Sunfrost up on his offer for our own, personal reasons. We have our own ambitious. But if we want to accomplish anything than we need to work together, not fight!" I looked between Sleetpaw and Flamepaw hopefully. "We can't take down the Dark Forest by ourselves. We need each other."

Flamepaw started to meow, "I don't know about _need_ -" but I silenced him with a hard glare.

"Brightpaw is right," Sleetpaw finally meowed, though he shot me a look that clearly read 'don't get used to hearing that'. "But she glossed over a step: to take down the Dark Forest together, first we all have to make it past the Culling."

A shiver shot down my spine. I still tried not to dwell on the Culling, or the fact that I _needed_ to be taken to the Dark Forest's homebase. The jet-black tom continued, "I already know that I'll be chosen for the Culling - I'm the most skilled apprentice ShadowClan has ever seen."

Flamepaw scoffed. "Wow, think you could tone down the humility just a bit?"

Sleetpaw ignored him. "But what about you two?" he turned and fixed me with an analytical stare. "Do you train everyday?" he demanded.

I nodded. "Every day, without fail. I'm usually the first to complete my tasks, too."

He nodded, then looked at Flamepaw. "What about you? You're so noisy, I have a hard time believing you can creep up on prey much less hunt."

I expected the fiery-tom to come up with some witty retort, but instead he looked almost _bashful_. "I can hunt and fight just fine," he mumbled, defensive.

Sleetpaw narrowed his ice-blue eyes. "Just fine?" he echoed.

"My mentor doesn't train me," Flamepaw admitted, catching me off guard. "And my Clan kinda does this thing where they… shun me. So I don't train my with Denmates either." He shrugged his broad shoulders and meowed, "so whatever training I have, it's because I taught myself by observing others."

"So you're miserable," Sleetpaw said flatly.

" _Technically speaking_ … maybe." He quickly added, "but I'm strong!"

"Strength doesn't guarantee anything," I murmured. I'd seen Dark Forest warriors throw fully-grown warriors around like they were kits.

"Exactly," Sleetpaw meowed. "It doesn't matter that you're strong if you don't know how to channel that strength. So that means," he turned to look at me, "we have our own mission."

I blinked, caught off guard. "We do?"

He nodded. "From now until the Culling, we're going to take turns sneaking out of camp to train Flamepaw."

Flamepaw looked just as surprised as I felt. "Wait, really?" he asked in disbelief. "You would do that for me?"

"Not for you," Sleetpaw was quick to correct him. "We're doing it for _the quest_. For some reason Sunfrost thinks we need you, and I would like to deal with him as little as possible."

"Oh, right," Flamepaw meowed, like it was obvious; even so, I noticed how his green eyes brightened with hope and excitement and how he couldn't help but beam happily. I wondered… Flamepaw seemed like the type to overreact and exaggerate, but I wondered how much truth there was behind his "my Clan shuns me" statement.

"Meet me and Brightpaw here tomorrow night," Sleetpaw ordered briskly. "From then on, we'll meet with you individually so we don't stir suspicion." A smirk ghosted across his lips as he added, "with my training, you'll pass The Culling without breaking a sweat."

"So, does ShadowClan just sit around and stroke your ego all day or something?"

"Yes," came Sleetpaw's immediate reply. "I'm doing you a favor, Flame-breath. Try not to make me regret it."

The ginger tabby tom narrowed his eyes and lashed his tail. "I'll try to be worthy of your time," he spat sarcastically.

 _Oh Sunfrost,_ I thought as I watched the toms size each other up, _just what did you give me to work with? Sleetpaw is swoon-worthy and skilled, but is he too arrogant to listen to others? Flamepaw is strong, but surely he knows that a warrior is much more than strength alone, right?_

Sleetpaw melted into the shadows like they were a second pelt, and he disappeared without uttering a goodbye. Flamepaw snorted and mumbled, "good riddance." He turned to me and suddenly any traces of frustration were wiped away, and he simply grinned. "Mind if I walk you home?"

I shifted my weight on my paws, uncomfortable. Even if Sunfrost himself picked Flamepaw to partake in this quest, I still didn't know much about him and had no reason to trust him. Plus I wasn't quite over that "stinky RiverClan" comment. But on the other paw, his grin was so bright and genuine that I couldn't find the will to refuse his offer.

"Sure," I finally replied. "But just so we're clear, I can defend myself. Just because I'm a she-cat doesn't mean I need your protection."

Flamepaw blinked, surprise in his dark green eyes. We started towards the end of the Island and he meowed, "I didn't offer because you're a she-cat." He jumped onto a fallen tree that I hadn't noticed before and started walking across; I followed him. "I know most she-cats aren't as strong as toms and don't serve as warriors, but that's because they choose not to, not because they aren't capable."

Now it was my turn to be caught off guard. "That's… exactly right. Wow."

He turned around and flashed me that grin of his. "What? Thought I was too mouse-brained to think outside the box?"

Guilt pricked at my pawpads. "I might have judged you a bit harshly…"

Flamepaw shrugged and jumped off the tree trunk, landing a bit messy but still steady. "I can't really blame you after our first meeting. I'm sorry about that, by the way."

"It's fine."

"I was really just trying to call you pretty, but I don't talk to she-cats very often. I don't talk to very many cats at all."

I chose to ignore the fact that he called me pretty again, and focused on the latter half of his statement. "You weren't kidding about being shunned by your Clan?"

He didn't glance at me. "Mhm."

"Why do they shun you?"

"It's a long story." That was all he said, and judging by the way his grin faded I figured he didn't want to talk about it. That was okay; we would have time to get to know each other in the coming moons.

It struck me that, by this time next moon, the only two cats I would be certain I could trust would be Sleetpaw and Flamepaw. I didn't know if that realization should send a giddy rush to my heart or a wave of terror.

Flamepaw continued to ramble as we walked, and I got the feeling that he couldn't quite stand silence. Usually cats who didn't know when to hush annoyed me (like Duskpaw, for example), but Flamepaw didn't really wait for me to respond to anything so I didn't feel obliged to devote my full attention to him. He mostly just filled the air with words and I hummed responses, until he asked, "are you nervous about the Culling?"

I shot him a curious look. "Of course I am. Aren't you?"

He shrugged. "I try not to think about it. Honestly, I don't know much about the Culling anyway. All I know is that the Dark Forest come to each Clan, have apprentices show off their skills and then choose two to return with them. They become Dark Forest warriors and occasionally show up on patrol."

"I think that's all any of us really know."

"But there are so many questions," Flamepaw pressed. "Like, two ThunderClan apprentices are chosen every new-leaf and every leaf-fall, but I hardly ever see them on patrol! So where are they?"

Dread curled in my stomach at the thought. "I guess they aren't allowed to patrol their birth-Clan, or… or they've been killed."

But Flamepaw didn't seem satisfied with my response. "There has to be more to it," he murmured. "And how do the Dark Forest turn apprentices against the Clans? I could never imagine turning on ThunderClan, even if I'm not their favorite cat ever!"

"I guess we'll find out soon enough," I replied quietly. I didn't like to think about the Culling either. It made me paranoid and anxious and sick to my stomach. Thankfully, I didn't have to answer Flamepaw's questions much longer. "This is where we split up," I meowed, as my border came into sight.

"Good luck sneaking back into your camp," Flamepaw meowed, then flashed me another grin. "But not because you're a she-cat or anything like that."

A wiry grin tugged at my lips. "Thanks." A sense of words unsaid hung in the air, and we shuffled our paws awkwardly. Then, suddenly, it was as if Sunfrost dropped the words onto my tongue: "May StarClan light your path."

A brilliant smile lit up his features. "May StarClan light your path," he echoed, and then spun around and bounded towards his ThunderClan home. I watched him leave for a few heartbeats, thoughts and questions swimming around in my mind.

Was this really his quest, and Sleetpaw and I were merely his companions? Sunfrost had told me this was a team effort, but that didn't mean we couldn't have a leader of sorts; someone to make the tough decisions.

 _But… Flamepaw?_ I couldn't help but be unimpressed. _Why not me? I'm level-headed! Or why not Sleetpaw? He's practically a progeny - I've heard stories of him even across the border! Surely he would make a much better leader._

I looked up to the silverpelt as if I would find all my answers there, and the view made me squint my eyes in concentration. Was my mind playing tricks on me, or did the stars seem just a tad bit brighter now?

 _May StarClan light your path._ The words came flooding back to me. I'd never heard them uttered before, but somehow I just knew them, and I knew they were the right thing to say. And with them came a sense of peace that I couldn't quite describe…

"Oh Sunfrost," I breathed, hoping he could hear me. "I know you're watching over us, but I can't help but wonder… if Flamepaw can't even make it past the Culling by himself, then how is he supposed to save anybody?"

The stars didn't have an answer for me, and Sunfrost didn't appear out of thin air, so I made the journey home without another word.

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **What's the most embarrassing thing you've ever done in front of your crush?**

 **Don't be ashamed, whatever it is! It can't be worse than tackling them, giving them a migraine and then insulting their family/friends! :)**

* * *

 **Our trio have officially met each other! A lot of you guessed that Flamepaw and Sleetpaw would have issues with each other, and you definitely weren't wrong. Poor Brightpaw is going to have to be the resident peacekeeper.**

 **I enjoyed this chapter a lot, and Brightpaw is especially easy to write (she's the most normal), and even if there are some parts that I'm still not completely satisfied with, I like the overall outcome of this chapter. I've been waiting to write Flamepaw and Brightpaw's first meeting, and it was a lot of fun! Poor Flamepaw, he's not the best when it comes to socializing xDD Maybe he'll get better at that as time goes on... or maybe not.**

 **LaurenRiverSister \- oooh, your review made my writer's heart happy! I admit, I spent DAYS trying to write Sunfrost the exact way I wanted him portrayed, focusing on every minor detail from the other apprentices' perspective of him to the way he ordered his words... not kidding! Sunfrost is very complex, and I loved how you sorta described him layer by layer :) It's awesome when you realize that you didn't agonize over a character for nothing - you really noticed everything that I was hoping you would! Thank you sososo much for your review!**

 **Snowfall16** **\- "** **I did think it felt a little forced or expected when Flamepaw took the most convincing, Brightpaw a little convincing, and Sleetpaw the least convincing, and how their POVs were placed." I did notice this as I was editing last chapter, but the order actually wasn't intentional! It was just how it flowed as I was writing. As for Flamepaw taking the most convincing, Bright some and Sleet the least, I promise that wasn't me being lazy - it's just their personalities! Due to his Clan's rejection, Flamepaw is a bit skittish and doesn't trust strangers easily. Brightpaw knows strangers shouldn't just be trusted, but she's willing to go out on a limb for a literal StarClan warrior - besides, she trusts her own judgement and Sunfrost seems good. Sleetpaw easily identifies Sunfrost as a StarClan warrior, but only agrees to help him after he realizes that Sunfrost's quest can help Sleetpaw complete his own mission.**

 **Misty Pines \- "W** **hy are Flamepaw's parents faded? From what I can tell, everyone seems to curse them for the situation they're in; is that counted as remembering?" Good point! I considered mentioning this in the chapter but couldn't find a way to add it, so I'm really glad you asked! Their situation is basically the same as StarClan's: when the Dark Forest first took over, they banned the topic of StarClan and eventually that was enough to weaken them to the brink of extinction. That's basically what ThunderClan did with Flamepaw's parents, but fading works much faster with just two cats instead of the entirety of StarClan. Anyway, cursing them is technically remembering them, but most cats don't spend all day thinking about those two - just Flamepaw, but he doesn't remember them enough to keep them 'alive', get it?**

 **As always, thank you to everyone who reviewed! Your kind words/constructive criticism/theories always bring a smile to my face, and warm my heart like only a homemade chocolate chip cookie can! :)**


	6. When You Get Your Hopes Up (they fall)

_"Yeah, I know. I'm just worried because they're already my babies. And with Sleetpaw, he has a really witty, sarcastic sense of humor which I think will make people like him. And Flamepaw (the TC's tom name for the time being.) has a really spontaneous sense of humor, and they go back and forth a lot, so I think people will really warm up to him. Honestly, I can't wait for this one scene where Flamepaw and him have this huge argument, and you find out why Sleetpaw is so cold. It's going to be a tear-jerker." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 8, 2015_

* * *

 **Chapter Five: What Happens** **When You Get Your Hopes Up (They Fall)**

* * *

"Hi Flamepaw. Would you like to go hunting with me?"

Wait, what?

I stared at Echopaw in complete disbelief for a moment. The silver tabby she-cat had never said much to me, and she'd _certainly_ never asked me to go hunting with her! I searched her expression for any hint of malice or mockery, but she… seemed _genuine_.

Unnerved by my silence, she took a step backwards and said, "Um, if you don't want to then it's okay, I just-"

"Sure!" I exclaimed, a little too loud and a little too enthusiastic. Patrols were just sent out so the camp was empty of warriors, but the queens paused their gossiping to spare us some strange looks. I ducked my head as my cheeks flushed hotly, but added, "I would really like that..."

Echopaw smiled, and it was the exact same smile she shot me during our training session so many days ago. "Great," she purred. "Come on then. We need to get started before all those patrols catch the prey!"

She was only half-kidding. Prey was never abundant, not even in green-leaf, but with the start of leaf-fall so close is was becoming scarce again. I couldn't remember the last time I - or anyone else, really - went to sleep with a full stomach.

We padded out of camp together, though Echopaw stayed a few steps ahead of me. I quickened my pace and caught up with her, then fixed her with a curious look. "So… you've never asked me to hunt with you before."

She shrugged.

"Any special reason why you did today?"

The ghost of a frown tugged at her lips, and it was answer enough. There _was_ a reason why, but before I could press her for details Echopaw stopped walking and meowed, "I smell mouse."

I opened my jaws and scented the air; she was right. Somewhere nearby, there was a delicious mouse just waiting to be caught. "But where?" I murmured, scanning the green undergrowth for the furry little creature. I tried following the scent, but I kept losing it.

"There," Echopaw whispered, pointing to a pile of leaves with her tail. She started stalking forward across the forest floor, and I watched her in admiration. She moved gracefully and with a perfect crouch, no doubt mastered over training.

Suddenly she brushed her tail across the ground, and I blinked, caught off guard. I didn't have much training, but Jumpfoot drilled it into my head that your tail should never touch the ground while hunting - it would scare the prey away!

But the sound her tail made was... different. It wasn't loud or noisy, but it almost sounded like the breeze rustling through the trees. I looked to the sky and sure enough, the trees were completely still.

Echopaw brushed her tail softly across the undergrowth, and suddenly the mouse appeared! It didn't dart in fear, but instead it poked its head out of the pile of leaves, and then- Echopaw pounced! She landed square on the mouse's head and quickly killed it with a clean bite to the neck.

"What?" was all I could ask.

The silver tabby she-cat looked up, bashful. "I can make wind sounds with my tail," she explained. "It's strange, I know, but it coxes prey out of hiding."

"That's not strange - it's awesome!" I exclaimed, startling Echopaw and probably every other mouse in the forest. "Can you teach me how to do that?"

Echopaw smiled. "I could try, although it _does_ require you to be very, very _silent._ "

"Oh." I blinked and meowed, "uh, better not waste your time then. I'm a lost cause when it comes to silence."

"So I've noticed," she replied, as a smirk tugged at her lips. "I share a den with you, after all."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You snore."

I couldn't help but sputter indignantly. "I do _not_ snore!" I cried, offended.

Echopaw laughed and meowed, "yes, you _do_! And it's downright awful. I'm surprised Specklepaw hasn't smothered you in your sleep yet; she swears it keeps her up all night."

My face flushed with red hot embarrassment; how was I supposed to know I snored? I was always asleep when I did it! "She's probably too scared to get within a mouse-tail of me," I mumbled.

The silver tabby she-cat shrugged agreeably. "Probably, but don't take it too hard. Specklepaw is scared of a lot of things." She wasn't wrong.

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was all just an act," I meowed, as I started padding through the forest again. Echopaw buried her mouse then hurried to catch up with me.

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it: everyone has their fears, but Specklepaw is scared of _everything_ : me, the Dark Forest, thunderstorms, blood, snakes, the abandoned thunderpath, jumpscares, and bluebirds."

Echopaw blinked, surprised. "Bluebirds?"

I nodded. "I overheard her tell Adderpaw that they're unnatural."

Echopaw laughed. "What would she gain from putting on such an act?"

"Do you think the Dark Forest would choose such a miserable apprentice to join them?"

My Denmate froze where she stood, and I watched as understanding dawned in her green eyes. "Oh my," she murmured, almost as if shocked. "That's brilliant."

"Or incredibly mouse-brained. Who says the Dark Forest won't just kill her if she pretends to be _too weak_?"

"Or if they realize that she's only acting," Echopaw added quietly. She shook her head and meowed, "For Specklepaw's sake, I hope it isn't an act."

Was it wrong of me to hope that it _was_ an act? Every ThunderClan cat lived with a certain amount of fear when the Dark Forest was concerned, and it drove me insane. But for one cat to be scared of - well, _everything_? Specklepaw would die of a heart-attack before she ever became a queen.

Plus, if it _was j_ ust an act and it actually managed to keep her safe, then Specklepaw was the most intelligent cat in ThunderClan. Something about that was hilarious to me.

"Come on," Echopaw meowed, shaking me out of my thoughts. "Let's see if we can catch some prey you _didn't_ scare off."

 **Written in the Shadows**

Echopaw was really nice.

I was never sure what to expect out of the she-cat because we rarely interacted, but I always figured that she was this intelligent, pure ThunderClan cat who frowned upon me but wasn't outwardly cruel because she was too polite for that.

I wasn't completely off in my assumptions. Echopaw was intelligent and polite, but she didn't treat me any differently than she treated our other Clanmates. She was a bit quiet and sometimes her movements seemed a little _too_ polished, and she vaguely reminded me of Brightpaw.

I didn't ask her if she planned on serving as a warrior or queen (according to Brightpaw that "wasn't any of my business"), but I thought she could go either way. She wasn't much of a fighter, but she was an excellent hunter, and the Clan could always use another one of those. Echopaw seemed to genuinely enjoy her duties, but then again, it would always be safer to serve as a queen. Plus there was just something _soft_ about her; I thought she would make an ideal queen.

Overall, I liked the she-cat a lot. I found myself wishing that we spent more time together before now, because I certainly could have used a friend long before now. It didn't seem fair to make a friend right before I would have to leave and join the Dark Forest.

We were padding lazily back to camp, only pausing to dig up our catches. I managed to catch two mice, and Echopaw had her own mouse and a bird. Four scrawny pieces of prey wasn't very much, but I was proud of us.

"Thank you."

I glanced at Echopaw, puzzled. "For what?" I asked.

She was avoiding my gaze at all costs, staring at her paws almost bashfully. "For burying Rowanpaw," she meowed quietly.

My green eyes widened in shock. "How did you know about that?" I hadn't told anyone, and no one asked. As a matter of fact, as far as anyone else was concerned, I was in camp when Rowanpaw's murder took place.

"I saw you sneak into camp," Echopaw explained, still refusing to look me in the eye. "You… you had this look in your eyes, like you'd just witnessed something _horrible_." A shiver shot down my spine as I recalled the memory, and the she-cat shrugged weakly. "It didn't take much to put two and two together."

I couldn't help but ask, "You didn't tell anyone else?"

Echopaw shook her head. "I didn't want to cause any trouble for you."

Huh. For some reason her words ignited a warm glow within my chest, and suddenly it was easy to smile. _Friendship is nice,_ I thought to myself. _Knowing that others are looking out for you is nice, too._ It was great, really.

"Oh. Well, don't mention it then. I couldn't just leave him there, even if we were never friendly." I shrugged. "It was the right thing to do, y'know?"

The green-eyed she-cat laughed, and I didn't expect the bitterness I heard there. "I guess you missed the memo, then: cats don't do the right thing anymore, Flamepaw."

"Maybe they should," I replied.

She opened her jaws to respond, but a shout interrupted us. "Echopaw!" a voice called. " _Echopaw_!"

I didn't recognize the voice, but Echopaw's eyes widened. "Blizzardfur!" she cried. "I forgot, we were supposed to train together at sun-high!"

I looked up to the sky and noted the setting sun. "Oops."

"He's going to kill me," she mumbled, and took a running start towards camp.

"Hey, wait!" I called, and followed her for a few steps. The she-cat stopped and spun around to look at me, and I shot her a bright smile. "Thanks for today! It was fun, to just hunt and talk and-"

"Please don't tell anyone about this, Flamepaw!"

My smile froze. "About-?"

"Today," she meowed quickly. "Just- can we please keep it between us? I wanted to thank you for what you did for Rowanpaw, but if Jumpfoot or Adderpaw found out that I spent time with you, they would never let me forget it!" her words came out in a rush and her green eyes were wide and pleading, and my heart ached in ways it hadn't since-

"This was a one time thing, okay?"

"I don't understand," I meowed, and I didn't think that I wanted to.

Echopaw exhaled a breath, and when Blizzardfur called for her again I watched her wince and squeeze her eyes shut. "We can't be seen together, Flamepaw. My father hates you and my brother hates you, and Rowanpaw hated you, and I- Rowanpaw is dead, and I can't let them down now."

" _Echopaw_!"

"I have to go," she said softly, and before I could protest or beg her to stay, she was already racing through the forest. She kicked moss and dirt and leaves up and left me alone.

Alone. Again.

I was used to being alone, but I wasn't used to being let down; it was hard for others to let you down when you didn't get your hopes up in the first place.

But Echopaw was _different_ \- I didn't think she was like her kin! And maybe that was why this hurt so much: because she _wasn't_ like her kin, and yet I was still poison to her. It wasn't just the bitter, cold-hearted warriors who hated me; apparently it was the nice, polite she-cats too.

 **Written in the Shadows**

That night I rolled around in my nest, unable to rest. My moss was dry and itchy and my heart was swollen and hurt, and Echopaw slept soundly on the other side of the den. Adderpaw's tail was curled around his littermate protectively, and at that moment, I would have done anything to have just _one_ cat who cared about me like that.

 _I used to have two,_ I thought, as two blurry faces appeared in my mind. One face was dark ginger with… hazel eyes? The other face was brown-and-white and showcased the biggest, brightest pair of green eyes.

Of course I didn't really know what my parents looked like, but I'd carried those faces around in my mind since kithood.

 _They're gone too,_ I reminded myself, and that did nothing to soothe my invisible wounds. _They're not just dead, they're… dead even to the dead!_ If there was no room in StarClan for my parents…

 _Maybe I can bring them back to StarClan?_ I thought again, and this time I perked up a bit. _Maybe I can keep them alive in my thoughts? They're already faded but… Sunfrost never said that cats had to_ _stay_ _faded!_

And if I could bring my parents back to StarCan, then who else could I save?

 _The stronger StarClan becomes, the weaker the Dark Forest is. This could be it - this could be how I defeat the Dark Forest! Just wait until Sleetpaw and Brightpaw hear-_

I shot to my paws and barely caged my gasp - Sleetpaw! I was supposed to meet him tonight for another training session!

 _Oh goodnes-, uh, Oh StarClan,_ I corrected myself. I tiptoed over my Denmates sleeping bodies and avoided stomping on their tails. If someone woke up and questioned me, or worse, alerted the Dark Forest guard, I would be mice-meat.

Thankfully I made it out of the den without waking anyone up. I quickly scanned the camp to make sure it was empty of warriors, and then darted towards the dirtplace.

 **Written in the Shadows**

 **Sleetpaw**

Of course Flamepaw was late. The ThunderClan fool didn't value time - his or anyone else's - and thus had no problem wasting it.

Me, on the other paw? In the time that I waited for him I groomed my pelt, patrolled the entire Gathering Island (twice), and completed a list of things that my time would be better spent on. The list was extensive, because my time would have been better spent on _literally anything else_.

I'd just added 'clawing my own eyes out' when Flamepaw finally showed up, panting and heaving like he'd just ran from ThunderClan's camp to here. And maybe he did, but I didn't care. After all, he wouldn't be so tired if he'd simply been on time.

"I'm here," the lizard-brain announced, right before he flopped onto his side.

I raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "I'm not blind."

Flamepaw glanced at me, somewhat apologetic but mostly tired. "I forgot we were training tonight-"

"-even though we've had a training session every night?"

Whatever lame excuse Flamepaw had prepared seemed to die on his tongue. The weariness drained from his green eyes, and a spark replaced it. "I had a difficult day," he meowed, each word sharp with an unspoken warning: _back off_.

If this Thundercat thought I was scared of him, he was even more lizard-brained than I thought.

"You do realize that my time is valuable, don't you?" I demanded. "Even if _you_ don't think so, I could be asleep in my nest right now, resting. Or I could be training myself, rather than pacing the Island waiting _for you._ "

Flamepaw got his legs beneath him and stood up, and used his height advantage to tower overtop of me. "I said 'sorry'!" he snapped.

"Actually, you didn't," I retorted icily. "You gave me a half-hearted, lizard-brained excuse. Do you even realize how important these training sessions are?"

"Of course I do! I-"

"Sunfrost is asking us to infiltrate the Dark Forest's camp," I plowed on, because I'd already heard enough excuses for the night. "He's asking us to risk not just our _own lives_ , but _each other's_ , and right now I wouldn't trust my life in your paws even if you were the last Clan cat alive!" I snarled.

I didn't lose my temper very often. Tempting as it could sometimes be, if you gave others the ability to make you snap then you also gave them the ability to control you. After living with the likes of Marshpaw, Foxblaze, Briarpaw, and the rest of ShadowClan I thought I'd mastered the art of maintaining my cool, but there was _something_ about Flamepaw… like his namesake, he burnt the edges of my patience until there was nothing left.

However, Flamepaw didn't even _try_ to reign in his temper. As I was still fighting the urge to claw the other tom's ears off, he was already lunging for my face.

I sidestepped him, but just barely. I wasn't focused and I hated the way my skin crawled with hot frustration, but Flamepaw was used to this sensation. I spun around to cuff him but my movements were clumsy; I gave Flamepaw the perfect opening to barrel underneath me and knock me off my paws.

 _Get it together!_ I gathered my wits and bared my teeth into a snarl, then crouched down and accepted my role as the offensive. Flamepaw didn't waste any time; within heartbeats, he was charging at me. I sidestepped again and quickly landed two blows to his side. The ginger tom hissed, a mixture of pain and anger, and rammed his shoulder into my chest, knocking the air out of my lungs.

 _He uses his size and weight to his advantage, but he isn't technically skilled._ Sparing with Flamepaw wasn't much different than sparring with Marshpaw. With this in mind, I continued to dodge and sidestep his charges and land sharp strikes across his body; his ears, his head, his flank. With every landed blow, Flamepaw grew angrier and angrier until I thought he might literally burst into flames.

I thought victory would come easily after that, but I was a heartbeat too slow with one of my strikes and gave Flamepaw the perfect opportunity to spin around and land a blow on my chin. I stumbled backwards and shook my head, willing my eyesight to refocus.

"Had enough?" Flamepaw challenged, and I looked up at the other tom. His sides heaved with labored breathing, I noted with satisfaction. Our fight had winded me, maybe, but I could go on for hours. That was the difference between a consistent, rigorous training schedule verses a cat who was trying to cram three moons of training into a single moon.

"I could go on all night, but for your sake I'll end things here," I replied, refusing to let weariness enter my voice.

The fire-pelted tom tried to huff with indignation. "If you can go all night, then so can I!" he protested, but his labored panting made it hard to take him seriously.

I scoffed. "Sure you could, Flame-brain."

"Quit calling me that," Flamepaw snapped. I raised an eyebrow at his reaction; it certainly wasn't the first time I'd called him that, and every time before he'd had some sort of reaction. He was never verbal about it, though, until tonight.

"Why shouldn't I?" I challenged him, purely because he annoyed me more than any of my Clanmates ever managed to. "It fits you."

Flamepaw opened his mouth, then clamped it shut again. He appeared to be at a loss for words, but his fierce green eyes spoke for him. "Just quit," he growled.

The lizard-brain had already wasted my time tonight, and for that reason alone I was oh-so tempted to hurral a barrage of insults at him. However, when a new scent washed over the Island it froze all of my thoughts. _Dark Forest, or-?_

No, it wasn't Dark Forest. It was RiverClan.

"Brightpaw?" Flamepaw called, ears perked forward curiously and my own presence completely forgotten, as was typical whenever the she-cat was present.

If I wasn't also curious, I would have rolled my eyes.

The creamy-colored she-cat burst into the clearing, her pale green eyes a storm of emotions… none of them were happy. Against my will, a heavy stone of dread had already made its home in my stomach.

"Brightpaw!" Flamepaw exclaimed, beaming like Sunfrost had descended from StarClan and licked his nose. "What are you doing here? We weren't supposed to train tonight."

"You've overheard something, haven't you?" I asked, shoving pleasantries aside. "What is it?"

Brightpaw looked to me and I knew I was right; for once, I wished I wasn't. "I overheard the Dark Forest guards murmuring to each other," she meowed, even as she panted. I figured she ran all the way from RiverClan to this island. "The Culling is coming sooner than we hoped."

My gaze immediately flickered to Flamepaw. He needed as much training as Brightpaw and I could cram into him. While he was coming along… better than I expected, I knew he wasn't ready for the Culling. He grew stronger and stronger every day, but the Dark Forest weren't simple brutes anymore; strength wasn't enough.

If he wasn't strong enough to join their ranks, but strong enough to pose a threat, then they would kill him where he stood.

Realization dawned on the ginger tabby tom's face; he knew it just as well as I did.

"When?" he asked, and I was mildly impressed when his voice didn't quiver. "In the next moon?"

Brightpaw inhaled a breath of air and when she exhaled, her voice trembled. "In three days."

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **What are your thoughts on Echopaw?**

* * *

 **This chapter was short compared to the others (only 3,712 words excluding the AN) but a lot happened! We finally got a good look at Echopaw and her awesome hunting techniques, a rare Sleetpaw POV, anndddd The Culling is next chapter! I know I'm sort of rushing through these first few chapters and you probably don't feel connected to the characters (or, just Sleetpaw) yet, but I promise the plotline doesn't really pick up until after the Culling. So get ready, because things are about to pick up!**

 **Also, a few of you have mentioned that you think Brightpaw's "I'm a she-cat and proud, etc" character is forced or just not believable. Let me try to clear some things up. The main reason why this mindset exists is because the Dark Forest have convinced the Clans that she-cats are weak. They've bullied them for so long that they believe it's simply safer to serve as a queen rather than a warrior - which is exactly what the Dark Forest wants. Less warriors equal less resistance, and weakens the Clans of strong warriors.**

 **Toms simply don't have a safe option like she-cats, or else I imagine they would take it. Toms really have no choice but to become warriors, so they've never considered anything else. She-cats, however, have always had the option to become queens, so when they realized that queens are somewhat valued by the Dark Forest... well.**

 **It really just comes down to the fact that these Clan cats want to feel safe, and she-cats have found a way to do that (sorta). The Dark Forest certainly aren't going to lift them up or tell them otherwise, y'know? So they've sorta oppressed themselves, and without any strong female figures to tell them otherwise, they've just fallen into this new mindset.**

 **As for Brightpaw, specifically: I'm aware she comes across as forced. Brightpaw thinks she has to overcompensate and be stronger than anyone else because she is a she-cat. However, that isn't... always the case. Just keep in mind, this is only chapter five and most of the story has been world building and I haven't focused much on character development. Just trust me when I say, Brightpaw may not have Flamepaw's tragic past or Sleetpaw's mysteries but she has just as much growing up to do as they do ;)**

 **Excophous \- you aren't the first person to voice these concerns, and I'm sure you won't be the last, but I hope the above explanation cleared some things up for you! :) Thank you for your review! **

**LaurenRiverSister \- ****your guesses are good! Brightpaw, while mostly annoyed by Flamepaw, would definitely try to comfort him. Sleetpaw... I'm not completely sure how he'll react yet, because he's so complex and his POVs haven't done that justice. In the next two or three chapters though, we're going to finally get a good look inside his head. As for the Flamepaw and Brightpaw romance, I can't spoil anything, but it DOES play a role in this fic. Whether or not Brightpaw returns his feelings is a secret ;)**

 **KiwiSpark01 \- interesting predictions! Although I have to correct you on one: Sunfrost never confirmed that he is ThunderClan. If you go back and reread the chapter _all three_ apprentices assume he is from their own Clan, and he never actually agrees with them. I intentionally did that because Sunfrost's birth-Clan is an important factor and I wanted you guys to be surprised when I revealed it. But anyway, I enjoyed reading your theory! You clearly put some thought into it. Thank you for reviewing, Kiwi!**

 **As always, thank you to everyone who took time to review! If I could send you all homemade chocolate-chip cookies, I would! :) :) :)**


	7. The Culling - Brightpaw

_"I really want to add a scene where the DF warriors give a "physical inspection" to decide which she-cats will make the best breeders, and Brightpaw is the only one of the three who have to endure that process, but I can't really find a place to slot it in. The Culling consists of three main challenges (hunting, fighting, and something Clan-specific), and for she-cats, the physical inspection. I think it's a good way to highlight how she-cats are viewed nowadays without blatantly typing "she-cats are only good for queens", y'know?" - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Sept. 20th, 2018_

* * *

 **The Culling - Part One**

* * *

 **Brightpaw**

The next three days inched by.

The Clan was alerted the next morning that the Culling would take place earlier than anticipated. Pikefin didn't breathe a word of protest, despite how unfair the circumstances seemed; the queens clutched their kits closer to them. The warriors mumbled bitterly to one another, and eyed their apprentices with curiosity; would the Dark Forest demand that a tom return with them, or would they "settle" for two she-cats?

My Denmates were a wreck.

Springpaw cried herself to sleep.

Heatherpaw couldn't eat without it coming back up.

Hollypaw woke up at dawn and trained until dusk.

Duskpaw paced the camp and snapped at anyone who attempted to console her. She had a high chance of being selected for the Culling, and she was forcing herself to accept it.

Despite the fact that I actually _needed_ to be chosen, I still felt like my pelt was crawling with fire ants. No one had ever been to the Dark Forest's camp and returned to tell about it, so all I could assume was that it was very, very dangerous; considering so many cats were culled and then never seen again, I could also assume that death was commonplace.

 _What if they do choose me, and then I'm killed?_

No, don't think like that!

 _What if Sleetpaw or Flamepaw are killed? How will we carry out Sunfrost's quest?  
_  
Probably best to not dwell on that either, especially since Sleetpaw and I only had a half-moon to really train with Flamepaw. The ThunderClan tom wasn't the fastest learner, but he was determined and clearly practiced everything we taught him. Still, there was so much more he needed to know…

What if he wasn't chosen at all? How would Sleetpaw and I communicate with him? There was no way the Dark Forest would allow us to see the Clans again, at least not until we were trusted warriors.

 _Quit thinking like that!_ I shook my head to clear my mind. I could spend seasons coming up with reasons why this quest could fail, but those wouldn't do me any good. I needed to be calm and have a clear mind, and focus on my goal. After all, I _did_ have competition.

No one ever wanted to be culled, but no one ever wanted to appear so weak that the Dark Forest simply slit their throat. So when the warriors came around to assess you, you gave it your all and hoped that someone else caught their eye. Of course the strongest, most skilled apprentices were always chosen, but since RiverClan only had she-cat apprentices, the Dark Forest might be inclined to do things a little differently.

There was strength in numbers, and that's why queens were so important. The Dark Forest could choose their two apprentices based off of who would make the better queens. If that was the case then Springpaw and Heatherpaw were the obvious choices; both she-cats were built very feminine and had warm, caring personalities. Neither aspired to become a warrior.

If the Dark Forest wanted future warriors, then it came down to me, Duskpaw and Hollypaw. I was skilled in everything, but I wasn't brilliant in anything, whereas Duskpaw was the best fighter and Hollypaw always caught the most prey.

 _This would be so much easier if I knew what the Dark Forest were looking for. Do they want queens to provide kits, or do they want warriors?_

I'd spent the last three days mulling over these thoughts, and if gave them any more attention then I would drive myself insane. However, it looked like I would be able to keep my sanity for a bit longer.

Because the Culling was today.

 **Written in the Shadows**

The patrols would arrive at sun-high, in just a few hours. Until then apprentices were instructed to remain inside camp, so I cozied up next to Springpaw and tried to ignore the pitying glances my Clanmates shot me.

 _Poor Brightpaw, if she's chosen then we'll never see her again._

I was usually an optimist, but the Culling had a way of making you focus on the darker side of things.

"Brightpaw," Springpaw whimpered, and my attention shot to her, "what if the Dark Forest pick me?" She sounded so miserable that it made my heart ache.

I laid my head on her shoulder and hoped my warm touch would soothe her. "Don't think about it, Springpaw."

"That's kinda impossible."

"Try," I replied, even though she was absolutely right. My own stomach was a bundle of nerves and with every passing heartbeat, my dread intensified tenfold. "Here, talk to me: what are you going to name yours and Pebblefall's kits?"

My light brown littermate exhaled a heavy breath. "I don't know, we haven't really talked about it. I brought it up once, but," her voice began to tremble, "Pebblefall said there was no point talking about it before the Culling… just in case, _y'know_ …" her green eyes shone with tears and when they started rolling down her face, I suddenly hated Pebblefall more than any Dark Forest warrior.

"If he truly loved you, Springpaw, he would never say that," I spat.

Springpaw rubbed her face on her paws and heaved another sigh. "Brightpaw, don't you understand? Pebblefall _doesn't_ love me, and I know that." Even with tears still shining in her pale green eyes, the ones that looked identical to my own, she meowed, "I'm glad he doesn't love me. If he did then the Dark Forest would exploit that, and we would be just like Pikefin and Softsky."

Her words were made of steel and for just a heartbeat, her eyes burned with a fire that I'd never seen in them before. Then that fire died and Springpaw burst into sobs. She buried her head in my pelt and I wanted to comfort her, but she cried as if she'd already been culled and the utter misery in her voice chilled my bones.

 **Written in the Shadows**

I gazed up at the sun with a heavy heart and dread wound so tightly in my chest, it was hard to breathe. Today was going to be the worst day of my life, no matter if I was chosen or not.

If the Dark Forest chose me, then I would have to say goodbye to my friends and Clanmates for… possibly forever. They would write me off as dead and banish me from their minds.

If the Dark Forest didn't choose me, they would choose Springpaw and I would have to say goodbye to my sister. I would fail Sunfrost, and our quest would end before it ever started.

"How do you feel?"

I wanted to claw the speaker across their face for asking such a fish-brained question, but when I turned around and came face to face with my mother, I softened. Flowerpetal gazed at me with a mother's love, and at that moment all I wanted was to be a kit again.

"I'm scared," I whispered.

She wrapped her tail around me and licked the top of my head. He touch was tender and warm and it nearly broke me. "Don't be scared," she murmured back. "Whatever is meant to happen will happen."

I knew she was trying to comfort me the best she could, but her words had little effect on me. I didn't resent her for it; what were you supposed to tell your kit who was trying to come to terms with the fact that she just might die today?

"I don't want to die," my words came out in one quiet breath. I hadn't confided in any of my Clanmates yet; I couldn't tell them that I _needed_ to be taken to the Dark Forest, that I _needed_ to betray them. Sleetpaw and Flamepaw were both so bold and headstrong, nothing seemed to phase them, and if I admitted that I was scared then they would think I was weak.

But Flowerpetal was my mother. Even if she didn't truly love Breezestep, even if I was conceived just to make two cats feel safe, I knew she loved me as only a queen could love her kit. And when I breathed those words, something in her broke. "Ooh, Brightpaw," she cooed, nuzzling my face and soothing my ruffled pelt with her tongue, "I'm sorry, darling, I wish I knew what to tell you. It isn't fair that you have to endure this, but there's nothing we can do about it."

" _There's nothing we can do."_ She was wrong. The Dark Forest might seem invincible but they weren't; they could be defeated and peace could be restored, if only someone was willing to risk everything and fight…

 _That's why I'm doing this._

I steeled my nerves and inhaled a breath. I couldn't afford to be weak right now. I needed to be strong, determined, and unbreakable. I needed to be the perfect Dark Forest candidate.

 _I can do this. I can do this._

"They're here!" a Clanmate hollered, and I spun around just in time to watch a patrol march into camp. I didn't recognize the patrol leader, a brown-and-black tom with nicked ears, but the malicious gleam in his eyes and the smirk ghosting his lips was completely Dark Forest. No Clan cat could manage to look so- _so cruel_ and _so satisfied_ about it.

Then I remembered that this tom used to be a Clan cat, and I thought I was going to be sick.

" _RiverClan_ ," the patrol leader boomed, "assemble your apprentices in the center of camp, _now_." He flashed me a white-fanged smirk, and a shiver shot down my spine when he added, " _It's time_."

 **Written in the Shadows**

The patrol leader introduced himself as Shredwhisker, and somewhere in the back of my mind I couldn't help but wonder what queen looked at her kit and decided to name him 'Shredkit'.

"You know how this works," Shredwhisker began, as he paced just a few tail-lengths in front of us gathered apprentices. "Your abilities will be tested, and the two most skilled apprentices will have the _honor_ of training as Dark Forest warriors. Those of you who are average will remain in your Clan, and train as warriors. Those of you who are deemed incompetent," he smirked, "will be killed without hesitance."

To my left, Springpaw practically trembled from head-to-tail.

To my right, defiance radiated from Duskpaw in waves.

I mustered all the boldness I could and put on a strong front; _catch their attention, act like you aren't scared of a challenge!_

"Alright," a second tom meowed, "first we'll determine which one of you is the best swimmer; then the best hunter; and then the best fighter."

"Come on," Shredwhisker huffed. "The first challenge will begin."

 **Written in the Shadows**

I wasn't sure how the Dark Forest would determine who the best swimmer was. I'd heard that sometimes they had apprentices swim in circles, or sometimes upstream. But when Shredwhisker ordered us to simply tread water, I thought these challenges were anything but.

That is, until they started pelting us with rocks.

"Hey!" Duskpaw snarled after one hit her shoulder. "Quit that!"

"She's a fighter," a pale gray tabby tom murmured to Shredwhisker.

Shredwhisker grunted his agreement, then raised his voice. "You're RiverClan apprentices - of course you can swim. But can you maintain your cool under an attack?"

 _They want us to remain calm under pressure,_ I told myself. _Okay, no problem. Just don't let them see how_ _freaked_ _out_ _you are right now!_ A sharp rock bounced off my back and I grit my teeth to keep from yelping in pain.

I did my best to continue swimming whilst also dodging the onslaught. It wasn't easy; the rocks that didn't hit me would hit the water around me, screwing with my senses or splashing water into my eyes. My legs were growing tired but I forced myself to keep treading the choppy waters. _Surely it's just a bit longer? What are they waiting for?_

Duskpaw was a good swimmer, but her shoulder was sore and bleeding and I could tell that she was tired; Springpaw had avoided contact with any rocks and was doing well. Heatherpaw had a cut above her eye and blood dripped into it, obscuring her vision; the ginger-and-white she-cat looked ready to give up at any moment. And Hollypaw-

Hollypaw cried out in pain when a rock slammed into her head. Her smooth strides became choppy and she immediately began to struggle in the water. "Help!" she whimpered, eyes wide with fear and pain. " _Help_!"

I tried to grab her scruff in my mouth, but Shredwhisker's sharp command stopped me: " _Don't_!"

I pulled away and stared at him, incredulous. "She's going to drown!"

Shredwhisker narrowed his eyes, and realization gripped my mind like icy waters. _Of course. They're going to let her die._

"Come out of the water now," the gray tom commanded. Springpaw and Duskpaw hurried to obey and quickly heaved themselves out of the river; Duskpaw winced as she flexed her shoulder. I swam to join them, and prayed that Sunfrost would have mercy on Hollypaw's life.

Heatherpaw, while she didn't protest, lingered behind and shot her littermate looks of concern. Finally the four of us stood and shivered on the shore, watching and silently urging Hollypaw to join us.

"Go on," Shredwhisker told us. "Silversmoke will lead you to your next challenge."

"But what about my sister?" Heatherpaw asked, amber eyes wide with fear.

"I'll take care of _your sister,_ " Shredwhisker replied. His voice was cold and full of mockery, and I squeezed my eyes shut; this would be the last time any of us ever saw our friend.

Heatherpaw seemed to understand this, fore tears began to roll silently down her face. My heart ached for her, and I stubbornly refused to let my mind wander and create scenarios; like, what would I do if Springpaw was in Hollypaw's position? Would her death be quick and painless, or would Shredwhisker drag it out?

I forced those thoughts out of my mind, refused to look Hollypaw in the eye, and kept my head down as we followed Silversmoke to our next destination. Even as we walked farther away, Hollypaw's pleas for help only seemed to grow fiercer.

"Help, help, _h-help_!"

And then they quit.

 **Written in the Shadows**

The next challenge was hunting. I wondered if the warriors were going to splash us with water as we fished, just to make things difficult, but they had a completely different idea.

"What do you mean "land prey"?" Duskpaw demanded, incredulous. "We're RiverClan! We don't hunt squirrels and mice; we fish!"

Silversmoke eyed my Denmate with tolerance. "We know you can fish, obviously. But you won't always have the option to fish for your prey, so you need to know how to hunt for land prey."

"It's not a difficult concept," another warrior added, snarkily.

"But we don't know _how_ to hunt for land prey," I protested. " _None of us_ are going to do well!"

The warrior, Swampclaw, glared at me. "Then your mentors have damned you. Unless you want to end up like your Denmate back there, you will catch _something_."

At the mention of Hollypaw, Heatherpaw whimpered miserably.

"You have until sun-set to return with your catches," Silversmoke meowed. "If you don't manage to catch anything, then you will face the consequences. Now," he curled his lips into a wicked grin, " _begin._ "

 **Written in the Shadows**

Hunting on the land wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. It certainly wasn't easy, but I managed to catch two water shrews. Perhaps Sunfrost had decided to lend me some luck.

As I returned to our designated meeting spot, my intestines were twisted and knotted with anxiety. Now that I knew I would be safe from any "consequences", all I could do was worry about Springpaw. She was a naturally talented fisher, but she never trained to sharpen her abilities; I couldn't guess how she fared hunting on the land.

I was the first apprentice to arrive, and the Dark Forest warriors eyed my two catches with approval.

"Not so hard, was it?" Swampclaw asked, his tone mocking. I had too healthy a sense of self-preservation to snap at him.

A little while later, and the reeds began to rustle. I perked my ears and expected Duskpaw to emerge, but instead it was… Springpaw!

"Wow!" I breathed, my gaze immediately drawn the massive squirrel that hung proudly from her jaws. "How-where did you find _that_?!" I'd only ever seen two squirrels in RiverClan before, and they were both skinny, scrawny things. But Springpaw's squirrel looked large enough to feed half the queens _and_ their kits!

Springpaw purred loudly as she dropped her catch. "It was cleaning itself near the Sunningstones, and I practically held my breath as I stalked it!" She smiled broadly as she settled down beside me, her earlier woos forgotten in all the excitement. "I guess I just got lucky!"

"Don't underestimate yourself," Shredwhisker spoke up, and something about the newfound gentleness in his voice sent a chill down my spine. I looked at him, but his gaze was locked on Springpaw. "A full-grown tom would have a hard time making such an impressive kill!"

To my horror, Springpaw soaked up his praise like he was just another handsome RiverClan tom. _She can't seriously enjoy his praise,_ I thought, stricken. _He's-he's a filthy murderer! How can Springpaw forget that so easily?_

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of rustling reeds. I turned my head just in time to catch Duskpaw entering the clearing, two mice dangling from her jaws. She looked rather smug, until she noticed Springpaw's squirrel.

"Please tell me Brightpaw didn't catch that," she meowed.

"It was me!" Springpaw chirped.

Duskpaw exhaled a relieved, "thank goodness."

I glared at the other she-cat as she settled down beside me, but kept my jaws clamped. Usually I would've had a retort on the tip of my tongue, but right now all I could think about was the Culling and the fact that Springpaw was _this_ close to being selected.

And what was worse? She didn't even care!

The warriors grew impatient as we waited for Heatherpaw to show up, but eventually she did. A single vole was between her jaws, and she refused to meet anyone's gaze as she dropped it with the rest of our catches.

"Took you long enough," Swampclaw growled. Heatherpaw cringed, but didn't respond.

"What's next?" Springpaw asked, and I could have clawed her for sounding so enthusiastic.

"Battle training," Shredwhisker replied. "Obviously the Dark Forest need cats who know how to fight, so this may very well be the most important part of your assessment."

Shredwhisker led the way to the battle area, with the other Dark Forest tom by his side. My Denmates and I followed them silently, with Silversmoke and Swampclaw keeping an eye on the rear.

I flicked my ear when I overheard the two toms whispering to each other. "Any bets?" Swampclaw asked. I slowed down a bit to overhear their conversation.

"The golden one, for sure," Silversmoke whispered back. "She's good at everything, and I would bet she's a stronger fighter."

"Doesn't have the most queenly build," Swampclaw remarked. "Too muscular."

"I don't think Lionslayer will complain if we bring back another strong warrior," came his response. "If she survives camp, he'll send her to the Mountains."

 _The Mountains? What are the Dark Forest doing in the Mountains?_

"True," Swampclaw meowed agreeably. "What about the other apprentice?"

Silversmoke scoffed. "If Shredwhisker has anything to say about it, we'll be getting that brown one." _Springpaw._ "She looks like she'll produce some healthy litters; she's got those wide hips."

"Shame," Swampclaw murmured. "I like the cream one." _Me!_

"I thought you would want a queen," the pale gray tom remarked. "Something to play around with. Warriors aren't much fun."

I didn't turn around, but I could practically _hear_ the wicked smirk that spread across Swampclaw's lips. "Oh, I'll make a queen out of her. Show these pitiful Clan cats some attention, and they roll on their backs, just as nice as can be."

My stomach started to churn as Silversmoke commented, "She has a nice body. Perhaps not queenly, but it's attractive."

Swampclaw purred, and I never thought a purr could sound so _slimy_. "Mhm. Just think of all the horrible, _wonderful_ things I could do to that body. Pin her down, and she'd be pregnant within the moon."

I couldn't help but gasp, and my pawsteps quickened to catch up with my Denmates. I slowed down beside Duskpaw, and ignored the curious glance she shot me as I tried to control my heaving; I thought I was going to be sick. _He's disgusting!_ I thought. _They're all absolutely disgusting, and I-I would rather take my own life than submit to one of them!_

Why was I trying so hard to impress them? So that I could be taken back to their camp, so that I could become _one of them_? So that I could prance around camp and give them something to entertain themselves with?

 _I want nothing to do with them! They're disgusting, and I'm better than some plaything, and I…_

And if I ever wanted the Culling to end, if I ever wanted to _truly_ save anyone, then I needed to be strong and do this. For anyone to ever have peace the Dark Forest would have to come down, forever.

 _Sunfrost chose me. Sleetpaw and Flamepaw are counting on me. The future of the Clans depends on this! I can't let them down!_

That mindset fueled my weary pawsteps until we reached the battle arena. Shredwhisker gestured for us to sit down, and we obeyed him silently. "Battle tactics are the final part of this assessment," he began. "By the time we're done with this challenge, two of you will be chosen to return to camp with us. And unless instructed otherwise, you will never see your Clan again."

 _Wait… won't we be able to say good-bye?!_ I told Flowerpetal I loved her right before we were dragged out of camp, but I didn't realize it would be the last time I ever saw her! There was so much more I wanted to say! And-and I never got to tell Breezewing good-bye! Or Frogspots! What would they-

"Are we going to face each other, or one of you?" Duskpaw asked, as she eyed Shredwhisker.

The brown-and-black tom smirked at her. "Eager, aren't we? You'll face one another, and we will judge every move you make. So," his gaze rolled across our heads, "you'll have to pair up. Originally one of you would have had to fight twice, but now that the weak one is dead-"

" _Hollypaw,_ " I snapped, if only for Heatherpaw's sake.

"-you pair up evenly. Now the only question," his gaze lingered on me, "is which friend will you fight?"

This was always the most dangerous part of the assessment. Even if Dark Forest warriors weren't pelting us with rocks, even if we weren't hunting unfamiliar prey, I'd been dreading this challenge all day.

I'd fought my Denmates before; Duskpaw and I were regular sparring partners. But the Culling did things to cats and their mindsets, and everyone wanted to be safe from the Dark Forest even if it meant sacrificing someone else…

I remembered the last Culling. I was a young, fresh-faced kitten then, but I still understood the severity of the Culling when only one of the six apprentices returned to RiverClan. That cat was Softsky, and she didn't leave the Medicine Cat den for days as her wounds healed.

I remembered the distrust that lingered in her eyes after that; she jumped whenever another cat brushed against her. Breezewing said that was just what happened when you watched your friends kill each other.

I glanced at Duskpaw, only to find that she was already eyeing me. We trained together as friendly rivals, but today we would fight for something more: to prove that we were strong enough to become Dark Forest, even if we would rather die.

I wouldn't try to kill Duskpaw. Would she try to kill me?

"Duskpaw. Heatherpaw. You're first."

My wide-eyed gaze snapped to Shredwhisker. "W-what?"

Duskpaw shot Heatherpaw a questioning glance. "Why would I fight Heatherpaw?" she asked, blunt. "I'm obviously stronger than her!"

Heatherpaw didn't protest. The she-cat had always been sassy, but today's events were taking a toll on her; by this point, her entire body was shivering.

" _Obviously_ ," Shredwhisker repeated the word, letting it roll off of his tongue. "Don't doubt the Dark Forest, Duskpaw. There's a method to our madness."

 _They want her,_ I realized. _They know that Duskpaw can take Heatherpaw, so they're making sure she wins her fight._

Duskpaw seemed to connect the dots. She didn't utter another protest; instead she turned to face Heatherpaw, and crouched down into position. Heatherpaw copied her, and the difference between the two she-cats was immediately noticeable.

Duskpaw leapt first, just like I knew she would; she never was patient enough to play the defense, just like a certain flame-colored tom I knew. She snarled halfheartedly but her blows were powerful, and when Heatherpaw spun to defend her flank, I caught a glimpse inside her eyes and it made my heart ache; she was so, so scared.

Softsky was her older sister. She knew of the last Culling just as well as I did.

I found myself holding my breath the entire fight. I knew Duskpaw would win, there was no doubt, but would she only do enough to win, or would she kill to prove?

The fight didn't last very long at all. Heatherpaw was shaken up from her littermate's death and she just wasn't as strong as her competitor. Within minutes, Duskpaw had her pinned firmly to the ground.

"Get up," Shredwhisker ordered, and the two she-cats obeyed. I was surprised to note that, while Heatherpaw had obviously acquired some new scratches and her pelt was dusted, she didn't look too bad.

Duskpaw didn't fight to kill. She only did enough to win.

The way she stared defiantly at Shredwhisker sent a rush of affection through my veins. _Of course she didn't fight to kill; Duskpaw isn't a killer. No one could make her hurt Heatherpaw any more than she wanted too, especially not some Dark Forest scum._

Shredwhisker met her gaze. "Duskpaw is the winner," he announced. A few of the Dark Forest warriors whispered to each other, and Heatherpaw lowered her head, but no one was truly surprised.

Duskpaw sat down a little ways off, and Heatherpaw returned to sit beside me. Silversmoke murmured something in Shredwhisker's ear, and the brown-and-black tom nodded. Then he looked at me and said, "Brightpaw, Springpaw you're next."

For some reason, I didn't realize I would have to battle my own littermate until now. It was obvious when Duskpaw and Heatherpaw were paired up, but it didn't sink in…

I couldn't look Springpaw in the eye and I silently stood to my paws and took position. _If Shredwhisker wants Springpaw so badly, then why pair us up? He realizes that she isn't a fighter._

"Begin," Shredwhisker commanded.

I finally raised my eyes to meet Springpaw's, and she was already smiling at me. We began to circle each other, waiting for the other to make a move, as I tried to figure out Shredwhisker's strategy.

"Just like training, right?" Springpaw whispered at me, still smiling. Why did she look like she was _enjoying_ this? Springpaw didn't like fighting, and she didn't want to join the Dark Forest, so why was she-

 _Of course,_ I realized. _Springpaw knows I won't hurt her because she's my littermate; I've always_ _protected_ _her. And that's what Shredwhisker is counting on, too. He thinks I'll go easy on my own sister, and will be able to justify choosing her._

I couldn't let him do that.

 _I'm sorry, Springpaw, but I can't stop looking after you yet._

I snarled and lunged at her, knocking her to the ground. Springpaw rolled back onto her paws and when our eyes met, I felt like someone was clawing at my heart; she looked like she was _scared_ of me.

"Brightpaw!" she cried. "What are you-"

I didn't let her finish speaking. I landed a blow on her muzzle, and then another one on the side of her head. She hissed in pain and stumbled backwards, and I chased her, striking wherever I could. I hissed and growled, putting on a show for our audience.

At some point I'd made a cut on her head, and when blood dripped into her eye she shook her head to clear it. I took my chance and bowled her head, forcing her into the submissive position.

" _Surrender!_ " I snarled in her face.

I could feel her entire body shaking beneath me as she exclaimed, "I surrender! I quit!" the terror and confusion that pooled in her green eyes, the ones so similar to my own, was sickening. More than anything I wanted to apologize to my sister, to make her understand why I acted like a monster and hurt her, but I couldn't.

So instead I jumped off of her, then turned to face the Dark Forest warriors. When Duskpaw won her match no one seemed surprised; now, they all stared at me like they were just seeing me for the first time.

A tiny piece of me was smug; I managed to surprise the Dark Forest.

Another piece of me felt so guilty that I wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

"Well?" I demanded. "Who won?"

Shredwhisker cleared his throat, then announced, "Brightpaw is the winner. And now, do to their overall performance, Duskpaw and Brightpaw have been chosen to return to camp with us and train as Dark Forest warriors."

I breathed a quiet sigh of relief; the weight of the Clans had been lifted from my shoulders. _Thank StarClan. I did it. I'm going to with the Dark Forest._

Duskpaw stood to her paws and wordlessly joined me, as Silversmoke said, "Congratulations. Thanks to your skill, you're going to join the strongest Clan in the forest. We-" he rambled on for a few for moments, elaborating on what an honor this was, and how thankful we should be for the opportunity, but I didn't hear a word of it. I stared at my paws until I finally had the courage to look at Springpaw, and then-

She was crying.

Her face was pressed into Heatherpaw's pelt as her shoulders shook. Her pelt was matted with dust and dirt and she had fresh cuts all over her body. She looked like she had just walked out of a battle, and it hadn't really been much more than training. And what's more, she had only been battling her _littermate_.

 _I did that to her,_ I thought, sick to my stomach. _And now she hates me. She's going to remember me as the sister that was willing to kill her just to join the Dark Forest. But I had to do it to protect her!_

"Come on," Silversmoke snapped, jerking me away from my thoughts. The patrol was already departing, on their way to StarClan-knows-where. I wanted to ask for a moment alone with Springpaw, or a chance to say good-bye to RiverClan, but I knew it was a hopeless request. I was Dark Forest now.

So I dipped my head and followed the patrol, refusing to turn around and call to my littermate. Somehow her sobs seemed to grow louder the farther we walked, and with every step I took, it felt like I was stepping on thorns.

I had done it. I watched a friend die, I watched another almost die, and I betrayed my sister. But I had been culled, and now I could fulfill my part of the quest.

 _Springpaw, please forgive me._

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **Have you ever hurt someone (physically/mentally/emotionally) in order to protect them?**

 **You don't need to elaborate, I'm sure it's very personal, I just want to know how many of you can relate to Brightpaw.**

* * *

 **I've updated this story once a week until this point, and that's because - you guessed it - COLLEGE :))) I'm also out of pre-written chapters now, so there's that! So the days of an updating schedule are basically gone until the Christmas season.**

 **If you read the PM quote at the very beginning, you'll note that I obviously left the physical inspection out of the chapter. I just didn't feel like it was necessary, especially with Swampclaw and Silversmoke's 'discussion'. I even sent the chapter over to Jeffrey Dahmer to get her opinion, and she agreed. Overall I'm glad with the decision.**

 **So, Brightpaw and Duskpaw have been culled! No surprises there, I'm sure. Next chapter focus on Sleetpaw and his Culling, and it's very different from Brightpaw's. I'll most likely give Flamepaw his own chapter as well, and then we'll get to the interesting stuff! :)**

 **LaurenRiverSister - your views on Echopaw are basically spot on. She's not as cruel as that chapter made her out to be, but she doesn't share the defiant, "wish for a better world" sort of gene that Flame, Sleet and Bright all seem to be born with. She's been raised in this new world and adapted to this new mindset. But really, I love her a lot, even if her time here is short.**

 **Foreststar of WindClan - I can't tell you if your Sunfrost-theory is correct, but yes, he WAS born after the DF took over. What Clan(?) he's from will remain a mystery for a couple more chapters, though.**

 **Lightningfire - Oh my goodness, thank you! I'm relieved that you already love this fic so much, and I loved reading your guesses! As for Dawn Frost, I hope you enjoy that fic as well! It's been my baby for awhile now :3**

 **Reviews are cool. So drop a short review and welcome yourself to the cool club :)**


	8. The Culling - Sleetpaw

_"Basically, Sleetpaw is brilliant in every way possible." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 12, 2015._

* * *

 **The Culling - Part 2**

* * *

 **Sleetpaw**

Before the Dark Forest took over, ShadowClan cats were most active at night; when the moon hung quietly in the silverpelt and few stars glowed dimly. Now after seasons of tyranty, that wasn't so true anymore. No Clan was allowed outside their camp once the sun fell, ShadowClan included, so we'd adjusted to a similar schedule as the other Clans.

So when the Dark Forest burst into our camp in the dead of night and started dragging us out of our dens, the Clan was caught off guard.

"What are you doing here?" Lakefog demanded, his pelt fluffed until he was twice his own size. "We gave you our evening report and didn't put a paw out of place!"

A large white tom shoved Lakefog. "Silence!" he ordered, as a sinister smirk widened across his face. "It's time for the Culling, Clan-scum."

"At night?!" Marshpaw demanded, even as a Dark Forest warrior muscled him out of camp.

The white tom cackled. "Of course, _at night._ You're the ones who wear shadows like a second pelt! It wouldn't be fair of us to take you out of your element!"

"But we don't train at night anymore!" Briarpaw protested, and I wondered if she thought her complaints would _actually persuade_ the Dark Forest.

"Tough luck," snapped another warrior, and I recognized him as Maggottail. He started shoving Briarpaw towards the camp entrance, and Icepaw and Crowpaw followed behind them. Their terrified protests echoed throughout the night.

The white tom turned and fixed me with a glare. "Move. _Now_ ," he growled.

Part of me wanted to hold his gaze in defiance, but I wasn't foolish enough to damn my life over an insignificant act. I wordlessly obeyed him and followed my Denmates out of camp.

 **Written in the Stars**

The trials that ensured were difficult, but I grit my jaw and forced myself to jump through every hoop, and to jump the farthest.

Hunting. Catch three pieces of pray.

I caught six.

Tracking. Trudge through the swamp and locate a piece of twoleg garbage.

I found it the fastest.

Night vision. Duck and dodge as the Dark Forest warriors pelted us with pine cones.

I didn't have a single scratch.

My Denmates' performances varied. Marshpaw wasn't a strong tracker and his bulk sucked him into the marsh, but he caught three pieces of pray and avoided the pine cones well enough. Briarpaw caught three pieces of pray and skipped across the marsh, but now had a nasty cut above her eye. Crowpaw and Icepaw were about even with each other; they both caught two pieces of prey, neither had impressive night vision, but Crowpaw handled the marshes well enough.

The Dark Forest were impressed by my abilities; I was certain to be selected, and no one was surprised. I trained harder than any of my Denmates for this very moment - I always knew I would be Culled, even before Sunfrost approached me with his quest. I had to be, if I ever wanted to seek revenge on Runningpaw.

The second apprentice to be chosen? It would be between Marshpaw and Briarpaw. Marshpaw looked exactly like the type of brute that belonged in the Dark Forest ranks, but as I told Flamepaw time and time again, strength wasn't everything. Briarpaw didn't excel in any category, but she met every standard - furthermore, she was considered attractive, and I saw the way she smiled flirtatiously at our overlords.

Either way, I wouldn't be pleased by their selection. Marshpaw foolishly considered himself to be my equal, despite the fact that no apprentice had _ever_ bested me before; not to mention, I couldn't imagine the headaches he and Flamepaw _combined_ would bring me. On the other paw, Briarpaw was a pretty she-cat who worshiped the ground I walked upon; I despised her attention.

 _Maybe Crowpaw or Icepaw will impress in the battle portion,_ I thought wirely. I snuck a glance at the littermates, and promptly rolled my eyes. They walked with their pelts mashed together, both quivering with fear. Icepaw jumped every time a owl hooted (although that was nothing new - Icepaw was a strangely paranoid she-cat).

The littermates would most likely be dead by the end of the night, and they knew it. Was it an unfortunate fate? Yes. Was it their own fault that they didn't spend every free moment training, preparing for this night? Absolutely.

Apprentices wailed and pleaded for mercy when a Dark Forest warrior hovered above them, but they weren't so worried about their lives when they slacked off in training, were they?

We reached the battle hollow, and the warriors and apprentices separated without command. Marshpaw glared at Briarpaw when she winked at one of the warriors; Crowpaw was shivering like he was lost in a blizzard; I stared at the warriors indifferently. This was just another obstacle.

The white tom had easily assumed the leadership position amongst the warriors, obviously one of the higher ranks in the Dark Forest. He had dark brown paws and a shredded ear, and spoke with smugness. "Showing us your fighting skill is the most important test. Dark Forest warriors hunt and track and are faced with other challenges, but if a cat cannot defend themself in battle, they have no place in our world," his gaze narrowed in on Crowpaw and Icepaw. "You've all survived thus far, but if you want to make it past dawn I suggest you win your fight."

I thought Icepaw was going to faint.

Suddenly the white tom looked at me and said, "You, come here." I stepped forward. "There's no point in watching you fight; you'll be a valuable warrior of the Dark Forest. Sit down."

It took only a heartbeat for me to comprehend what he meant; I wouldn't face off against my Denmates. I'd passed their tests; I'd been selected.

I was going to the Dark Forest.

I sat down beside the tom, only half-listening as Marshpaw protested. "Why not me?" he demanded. "I'm just as good as Sleetpaw! I shouldn't have to fight either!"

Maggottail silenced Marshpaw with a sharp strike to the head. "If you think you belong in the Dark Forest, prove it!" Marshpaw flinched and didn't utter another complaint.

The white tom (what was his name?) smirked slightly, then gestured for Briarpaw take position in the battle area. "You and you," he looked to Crowpaw now, "take your places."

Crowpaw swallowed thickly and did as he was told. He crouched down, prepared to play defensive, and when his eyes met Briarpaw's they softened. It occured to me that the two apprentices were probably friends. For the sake of analyzing the situation, I wondered what I would do if I were one of them; if I were softer, if I had a friend, could I fight against them?

(Of course I could. Their life was not more valuable than mine.)

The white tom raised his tail, and the apprentices began to circle to each other, their steps heavy with reluctance. Crowpaw's features were twisted with pain that Briarpaw had yet to inflict upon him, and suddenly he stopped circling and turned to look at the warriors. "Please don't make us do this," he pleaded. My ears flicked forward; my Clanmates didn't typically catch me off guard, but this was an exception. "Briarpaw and I- we played moss ball together as kits! I can't hurt her!"

A few warriors stood up and hissed with displeasure, but the white tom raised his tail to silence them. He narrowed his eyes and asked, "You refuse to fight?" His lips pulled back in a snarl, and the apprentices took a step backwards; as if they could possibly put enough distance between them and the furious warrior.

To his credit, Crowpaw raised his chin bravely. "Yes. You've already seen us hunt, track, and perform in the night. You have enough information to make an assessment."

 _Where did this lizard-brained courage come from?_ I wondered, genuinely surprised by Crowpaw's defiance. This wasn't the same tom that had been shaking like a leaf in the wind only moments ago.

Briarpaw's gaze slid to her opponent as well, and there was an uncertainty in her eyes and a stiffness in her shoulders that caught my attention. _She was going to fight him,_ I realized. If Crowpaw hadn't of spoken up, Briarpaw wouldn't have either. And judging by the way her muscles were tense like she was ready to spring, she was still ready to attack him.

Suddenly, I appreciated Crowpaw's foolish courage just a bit more.

The same could not be said for the Dark Forest warriors. The white tom blatantly ignored Crowpaw, turned to his warriors, and growled, "get them out of my sight."

Briarpaw's eyes widened. "Wait!" She protested, as warriors immediately began to flank her. "I'll fight him! I'll fight him!"

Crowpaw spun around to stare at Briarpaw, his eyes huge with fear and betrayal, but he didn't get the chance to voice those hurt feelings. Maggottail grabbed him by his scruff and started hauling him away from the arena, deep into the pines, despite his struggling.

Another warrior gripped Briarpaw, then shot the white tom a look. "It'd be a shame to waste her," he rumbled, and Briarpaw immediately froze, petrified. "She has such a pretty body, and-"

The white tom flicked his tail dismissively. "Have your fun, Talonclaw, then get rid of her."

The tom, Talonclaw, smirked down at Briarpaw, cooing mockingly, "Don't worry sweetheart, I'll take good care of you…"

Briarpaw and I locked gazes, and then she started screaming, begging for my help. _Sleetpaw, save me! You can take them! You're invincible! Help me, Sleetpaw,_ _ **help me**_ _!_

I didn't expect my intestines to twist and tangle in my stomach; I didn't like Briarpaw, I never had, but her cries were knocking on walls that I'd built when I was a kit. As Talonclaw dragged her away her eyes never left mine, and without thought my muscles tensed to jump-

"-Don't do it," the white tom snapped, breaking into my thoughts. "She's just a pretty face. She isn't worth your life." A not-so-subtle threat. If I chased Briarpaw, I would pay for it with my life.

I couldn't do it. I didn't like how the Dark Forest used she-cats, and I didn't like what Talonclaw was about to do to Briarpaw, but I couldn't stop it. _Think about Runningpaw and your revenge. Think about Sunfrost's quest. If Brightpaw and Flamepaw can do what their supposed to, then I have to._

I forced my muscles to relax and sat down. The white tom gave me a nod, the signal that I'd made the right choice, and then he looked at the two remaining apprentices. Marshpaw's features were contorted into a horrible grimace; Icepaw was staring silently into the woods that Crowpaw had been dragged into.

"You two," the white tom started, like nothing had happened, "prepare to battle."

"Just some advice, don't try to be a hero and make a stand," one warrior taunted.

Marshpaw gave his pelt a shake, like he could shake off what he'd just witnessed, but his pawsteps were heavy as he took up his position. Icepaw continued to stare into the forest for a few moments longer, then she silently crouched down and assumed the offense.

The white tom raised his tail, then dropped it. "Begi-"

Suddenly Icepaw snarled and lunged at Marshpaw! I stared at the white she-cat in shock as she attacked Marshpaw with a brutality that I never knew she had caged within her. _Maybe she didn't know, either._ Marshpaw definitely wasn't aware of it; he was so stunned that he didn't even defend himself against the first few blows she landed.

The warriors roared with laughter, delighted by the unexpected _excitement_. They encouraged Icepaw on and hollered when she raked her claws down Marshpaw's flank, blood spattering across the dry ground.

Marshpaw quickly came to his senses and began to defend himself. He blocked one strike, than another, but wasn't prepared for Icepaw to fake a move so when he tried to block his left flank, she tackled him on his right. They rolled across the ground until Marshpaw used his weight to pin her down, and just when it looked like Marshpaw muscled his way to victory- Icepaw unleashed a vicious snarl, leaned forward, and bit down on his exposed jugular.

 _Hard_.

I would never forget the sound of ripping flesh. Crimson blood sprayed from Marshpaw's neck wound, soaking Icepaw's white-and-gray pelt within moments. Marshpaw screamed, then quit just as abruptly as he started. He hovered above Icepaw for another heartbeat, then his legs buckled beneath his weight and he crumbled on top of Icepaw.

" _He's dead_ ," I gasped in disbelief. This wasn't how the Culling was meant to play out.

Marshpaw was lizard-brained and relied too much on his own strength, by no means invincible, but he was _skilled_ ; he was _strong_. He was a prime Dark Forest candidate.

And he had been killed by a strange, quiet she-cat who startled whenever she saw her own shadow.

The hollow was deathly silent as the warriors waited for what happened next. Marshpaw was dead, Icepaw was suddenly interesting, but only if she was alive…

Suddenly Marshpaw's body trembled, and then Icepaw shoved his limp form off of her. She stood up, shook out her pelt, and the hollow erupted into boisterous, vicious cheers.

The white tom raised his tail, and the hollow immediately fell silent. He signaled for Icepaw to join me, and she did, her pawsteps weak. When she sat down I wrinkled my nose at the overwhelming scent of spilled blood. _Marshpaw's blood._ I scooted over an inch as the white tom began, "Congratulations, apprentices. You two have performed impressiviously, and will become valuable members of the strongest Clan there is… if you survive," he added, flashing a fanged-smirk. "The other Clans will start their Culling at dawn. That gives us time to dig up your kills from earlier and eat."

 _It figures they would take our catches instead of bringing it back to ShadowClan. No surprise there._ It bothered me that the Dark Forest could be unpredictable one moment, but _boringly predictable_ the next.

The white tom gave us one more nod, then lead the way back to where we buried our catches. The warriors filed in obediently behind their leader, shoving each other and snapping. Icepaw and I took up the rear.

One would be inclined to believe that, after watching so many of my Clanmates die, I would be used to the tangy scent of blood; I wasn't. It took control to not gag as Icepaw walked quietly beside me. Marshpaw's crimson blood was already drying to her once-white pelt, turning a sickly, darker shade now.

I finally snapped, "Wash that blood out of your pelt when we stop."

Icepaw didn't respond. She didn't even raise her hooded gaze from the ground.

Uncomfortable silence settled between us, tense and full of awkwardness. I wasn't very friendly in the first place, but what were you supposed to say after you just watched a Clanmate murder another Clanmate?

As it was, I didn't have to say anything.

"Crowpaw is dead," Icepaw murmured, gaze still trained on the marsh beneath our paws.

"So is Marshpaw," I huffed.

"I know," Icepaw whispered, her voice hoarse. "I didn't want to kill him, but… Crowpaw is dead. It's not Marshpaw's fault, but I just… I felt so…" she trailed off before shaking her head and whispering again, "Crowpaw is dead."

 _She's in shock,_ I noted. Well, I wasn't in the mood for conversation anyway.

"Yeah, he is," I meowed, then sped up.

The Dark Forest warriors silenced as I trotted past them, but they didn't hiss at me. The white tom spared me a glance but didn't slow down when I joined him. "How is she?" he demanded.

"In shock," I replied.

He nodded. "She doesn't strike me as a killer."

"She isn't." _Wasn't._

"We'll have to change that."

 _Good luck,_ I wanted to scoff. Except, after you killed a cat the first time, what was so important about the second, the third, the fourth…

Runningpaw's face appeared in my mind like a smokey image, and I was quick to chase it away. Now wasn't the time.

"You were impressive today," the warrior said, all of a sudden. "You'll likely be placed on my team." _Team?_ "What's your name?"

For half a heartbeat I considered lying to him, but it would be pointless. "Sleetpaw."

"Sleetpaw," the warrior hummed. I didn't like the way he said my name, like it meant something to him. He was young considering his authority, and reminded me vaguely of Runningpaw; smug, but not without reason. He would be roughly the same age as well.

 _Does he know him?_ I wondered. Curiosity gnawed at my thoughts but I wouldn't ask; no one could know about my interest in my brother. No one could know that we were kin. It would tip them off; they would watch us closer, pick us apart, and when he died mysteriously I would be the first cat they looked for.

So instead of asking about Runningpaw, I tried, "What about you? Have a name?"

The white tom shot me a fanged-smirk. "The name's Onestrike."

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **Did Sleetpaw's Culling play out as you expected, or were there some twists?**

* * *

 **Uhh, long time no see?**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, despite being much shorter than the previous ones. Sleetpaw is more complicated than Flamepaw or Brightpaw if only because of his backstory, so I'm trying to be careful about how I protray him. He excels at almost everything so the whole 'hunting/tracking/fighting/etc' portion would have been pretty boring to read. *yawn* Really this was only interesting because of what others around him did.**

 **But now Sleetpaw is a Dark Forest initiate, and this is where his story picks up! His plot with Runningpaw is one of the most important in the series, so from now on, we're going to see the story from his POV way more often, along with a more developed, flawed character.**

 **So! What did you guys think about this chapter? Did you expect so many apprentices to be killed? Did you expect Icepaw to be the other apprentice? What's up with Onestrike? And finally, what will happen with Runningpaw?**

 **Up next, Flamepaw's Culling!**

 **Reviews are cool. So drop a review and welcome yourself to the Cool Kids Club :)**


	9. The Culling - Flamepaw

_"Flamepaw's culling is both completely predictable and unpredictable at the same time... does that even make sense?" - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 12, 2015._

* * *

 **The Culling - Part 3**

* * *

 **Flamepaw**

I thought Specklepaw was going to faint right then and there.

She, like the rest of ThunderClan, hadn't been expecting the Culling to happen today. We thought we still had a few moons to train, to prepare for the most important day of our lives. If it weren't for Brightpaw's warning I would have been just as stunned.

The Dark Forest patrol burst into camp after the first rays of dawn, effectively waking up the entire Clan. Queens poked their heads out of the Nursery, clutching their kits close to them; warriors spared us apprentices sympathetic looks; Birchtail, our _so-called leader_ , trembled as he addressed the patrol leader.

To be fair, I recognized the leader of the patrol and Birchtail's fear was not unjustified. He was a dark brown, battle-scarred tom; his name was Blisterwing, and he was the second-in-command of the Dark Forest. I was sure he didn't earn that position by speaking kindly and showing mercy.

Once he had ThunderClan's full attention, he made a show of striding to the center of camp, his lean muscles flexing with every pawstep. _Our warriors will never eat enough prey to develop that sort of muscle,_ I thought bitterly; the Dark Forest warriors were known from stealing from the measly fresh-kill piles. However, prey stealing was the least of my worries.

" _Cats_ _of ThunderClan_ ," Blisterwing sneared mockingly, "the time has come; today is the Culling."

Shock rippled through my Clanmates. I heard them mumble to one another, some bitter and some fearful, but of course no one spoke up to protest. Even as I focused on Blisterwing, I felt my Clanmates' gazes burn holes into the back of my head.

" _He's their symbol."_

" _His parents brought their wrath down upon us!"_

" _Finally, we'll be rid of that demon…"_

I was half-tempted to perform poorly during the assessments so that my existence could torment ThunderClan until I died. However, failure wasn't an option; not while Sunfrost thought I was special and Brightpaw was counting on me and Sleetpaw would scoff, like he'd expected me to end our quest before it even started.

 _I'll prove them wrong. I'll prove them all wrong, and then I'll restore my parents' names!_ I inhaled a deep breath, then exhaled. Blisterwing's eyes met mine, and the stirring in my gut warned me that I was in for a fight.

 **Written in the Shadows**

We departed from camp as soon as Blisterwing finished explaining what we, the apprentices, would be expected to do. We would be assessed on our tree climbing abilities ( _okay, not so hard..._ ); our battle moves ( _I was ready for that..._ ); and our hunting technique ( _Sunfrost, send help!_ ).

We didn't have long to say good-bye to our loved ones. Thankfully I didn't have many of those.

As I watched Adderpaw and Echopaw nuzzle Jumpfoot, and Specklepaw cry into Meadowlark's pelt, I wished more than anything that my parents were still alive. I knew they would hate to watch me walk into the Dark Forest, but at least I would know that someone cared whether I came back or not.

Suddenly a shadow loomed overtop of me. "Flamepaw," a voice murmured, and I spun around, surprised to find Sootface standing behind me. The Clan deputy appraised me thoughtfully, like he was carefully choosing his words, then said, "I'll miss your antics around camp."

A frown ghosted my lips. "Really?" I asked. "But… you said all I'm good for are headaches!"

Sootface shrugged, nonchalant. "You kept me on my toes. Anyway, I thought about what you told me; about how everything we do revolves around our fear for the Dark Forest." I remembered that conversation; it was the day Rowanpaw was murdered. "You have a point, but it doesn't matter. The Dark Forest are unforgiving, and if you try to rebel against them, they'll kill you where you stand."

I wondered if I should warn him that I was approached by a StarClan warrior and talked into joining forces with two other apprentices in an effort to overthrow the Dark Forest once and for all.

I decided, _nah_.

I'd stressed Sootface enough during our time together. Might as well let him think that he taught me _something_ about self-preservation. So instead I mustered a smile and head-butted him gratefully. "Thanks, Sootface. I'll miss you too." And I meant it.

Now we were on our way to the Sky Oak. Blisterwing led the patrol, his warriors followed him obediently, and we trailed behind them. Well, _they_ trailed behind; I walked closely behind the last Dark Forest warrior partly to catch snippets of their whispered conversations, and partly because I didn't want them to think that I was scared of them.

 _I mean, I_ _am_ _scared of them,_ I thought to myself. _I saw what they did to Rowanpaw, and Sootface was right; they won't hesitate to do the same to me. But they don't need to know that I'm scared of them._

Adderpaw, Echopaw and Specklepaw were deathly silent behind me. I glanced backwards a couple times, only for Adderpaw to hiss at me and tell me to mind my own business. Each time I was just as annoyed as the last; _he makes it seem like I'm on the Dark Forest's side or something!_

 _Aren't you, though?_ A quiet, nagging voice spoke up. _After all, you're the only apprentice who_ _wants_ _to be selected._

Guilt pricked my pawpads. I clamped my jaws together and tried to ignore the prickling sensation. _It's not like that. A StarClan warrior gave me this quest! I'm doing this to_ _help_ _ThunderClan!_ They just didn't know it yet.

I glanced backwards again. Adderpaw was ready for me with his glare, while Specklepaw looked everywhere _except_ for me. Echopaw met my gaze for a heartbeat, then looked down at her paws like they were the most interesting thing in the world. I turned back around with a scowl.

 _One day they'll be free, and it'll all be thanks to me. The Denmate they scorned because his parents actually stood for something._

 **Written in the Shadows**

I couldn't help but remember the last time I climbed a tree - I was attacked by a rabid squirrel, fell on my head, and woke up with a StarClan warrior hovering over me.

I hoped this time would be less _exciting_ than the last.

Blisterwing inspected the Sky Oak for a few moments, then turned his attention to us. "Is anyone afraid of heights?" he asked in his gravelly-voice. Specklepaw immediately raised her tail. Blisterwing nodded, satisfied. "Perfect. You can go first."

Specklepaw deflated, and I saw my chance to demand their attention. "I want to go first!" I announced boldly.

A warrior growled. "Tough luck, Clan-scum. Get in line." He was a ginger warrior with dark brown legs - like he'd just trudged through the swamp. _What Would Sleetpaw Do?_

I mustered all the bravado I could, lifted my chin, and looked the warrior in the eye. "I'm the best tree climber ThunderClan _has ever seen._ Just let me go first and get my turn over with, so that I can nap while _these_ mouse-brains," I gestured to the other apprentices, "humiliate themselves."

Adderpaw and Echopaw scoffed loudly, offended. The swampy-warrior seemed taken back by my show. Blisterwing narrowed his beady eyes and studied me in a new light.

I smirked. Sleetpaw would be proud.

"I know you," Blisterwing meowed abruptly, eyes narrowed. "You're the kit of-" he paused right before he mentioned their names, then restarted. "You're the symbol of the Massacure; of what happens when the Clans rebel."

My smirk faded fast. "My name is Flamepaw." I growled. The Dark Forest warriors shifted, each one eyeing me with renewed interest and sinister smirks.

Blisterwing snarled, and suddenly I got the impression that he'd hated me since the day I was born. "You have your _mother's eyes,_ " he spat. The fur along my spine bristled.

"Don't you talk about my parents!" I snarled. "Or else I'll give your mangy-tail a brand new scar!"

The warriors burst into cruel laughter. Blisterwing's features twisted, and he furiously gestured to the Sky Oak. "Climb," he said, voice dangerously low. "Climb high, and pray to your parents that you don't fall, because if you do and the crash doesn't kill you, _I will_."

I met his gaze defiantly, refusing to cower beneath him. _My parents weren't scared of you, and neither am I._ Then I started towards the Sky Oak, sent a silent prayer to StarClan, dug my claws into the bark and started climbing.

The warriors yowled louder the higher I ascended, some cheering me on while others called various threats. I refused to stop climbing until my muscles ached, and then I continued to press onwards. _I'll make it to the top of this stupid tree!_

I didn't pause to look down until I reached a sturdy branch, and when I finally did my stomach lurched. I wasn't afraid of heights, but I'd never climbed so high before. The others looked much smaller from up here.

"Keep climbing!" Blisterwing called. "Or are you done?"

I scowled. "I could go all day!" I hollered back, and hoped that I could keep my word.

The Sky Oak became less sturdy the higher that one ascended. Before long I was balancing on limbs that wobbled tellingly. I pulled myself onto a particularly skinny limb and barely had time to haul myself onto the next before it snapped beneath my weight, and tumbled _down, down_ to the ground.

"Sunfrost," I murmured, eyes wide as I stared down at my impending doom, "unless you have my replacement lined up, you better send some help!"

I wasn't sure about the extent of Sunfrost's powers, but when one of the warriors called up, "Alright, that's enough! Climb down!" I was sure grateful for them. After heaving a sigh of relief I began my descent, taking the branches by twos if it meant reaching the ground just a little bit quicker.

I jumped down when I was still a couple feet in the air and landed heavy on my paws. At the last second I reminded myself _What Would Sleetpaw Do?_ and conjured one of his infuriating smirks. I looked at Blisterwing and teased, "Not bad for Clan-scum, right?"

Blisterwing snorted. "Don't get cocky, or else I'll shred you into mousemeat. You survived the first trial, but that doesn't mean you'll survive the next." He gestured for me to sit down and shut up, and I obeyed him rather than test my luck.

Specklepaw was next to start her climb, so I took her spot beside Echopaw. I didn't realize my paws were trembling until I sat down. I made a point to ignore the fact and instead I leaned towards Echopaw and asked, "who called for me to come down?" I hadn't recognize the voice.

Instead of answering my question, Echopaw stared straight ahead. When it became clear that she was ignoring me, I huffed and directed my attention to Specklepaw.

The she-cat wasn't nearly as exciting as yours truly. She was a mediocre climber and made it only a couple of branches until she decided she'd had enough. When she jumped down the Dark Forest warriors seemed genuinely perplexed by her lack of effort.

 _So then maybe our theory was wrong,_ I thought, as Adderpaw took position beneath the Sky Oak. _Maybe Specklepaw really_ _is_ _scared of everything._ I wondered if Echopaw came to the same conclusion.

I glanced at the pretty silver she-cat and didn't know if I felt frustrated or deflated. I thought back to the evening we spent together: she thanked me for saving Rowanpaw; I thought we could be friends.

Adderpaw's weight pulled him down as he climbed higher, and it was apparent that he was reaching his limit. Echopaw would go next.

" _I guess you missed the memo: cats don't do the right thing anymore, Flamepaw."_

I leaned towards her again and whispered, "Hey."

"What do you want?" Echopaw hissed, barely glancing at me.

I bit back a stinging retort and instead whispered, "See that broken branch? The one above it is about to snap. If you stand on it you'll fall to the ground and break your neck. Avoid it."

Then I pulled away and watched as Adderpaw nearly lost his footing, decided he'd had enough, and started climbing down. He'd done well.

Echopaw stood up and shook out her silver pelt. She paused, like there was something she wanted to say to me, then thought better of it and took her brother's place.

She avoided the weak branch and almost climbed as high as me.

 **Written in the Shadows**

"You'll be paired into teams," Blisterwing began once we reached the Sandy Hollow, where we practiced our battle moves. His warriors assembled behind him, a united front with sinister smirks. I noted the way their claws flexed, and decided that trying to bolt would be pointless. "The two she-cats will square off, then the two toms."

 _I'll be against Adderpaw_. An excited tingle shot down my spine and pricked my pawpads. Nothing about the Culling should have excited me, but I'd been waiting for moons to battle Adderpaw and prove that I wasn't a useless lump of fur!

Adderpaw scoffed. "Too easy."

I shot him a hard look. "Wanna bet?"

Blisterwing waved his tail. "Save the bloodshed for your battles. She-cats, you're up first."

Echopaw and Specklepaw reluctantly took their places in the hollow, the former begrudgingly at being called "she-cat". Echopaw assumed the offense; Specklepaw the defense.

"Don't get too comfortable," I heard one warrior mumble to another. "The tortoiseshell looks ready to faint."

Blisterwing snarled, the signal to begin. Echopaw began to slowly circle Specklepaw, searching for the weakest point in her defense to attack. Specklepaw, to her credit, didn't immediately roll over and surrender so she was already impressing me.

Suddenly Echopaw struck Specklepaw with a sharp paw, then jumped backwards to avoid retaliation. Specklepaw growled in frustration and managed to land a few weak strikes on her competition, but it wasn't long until Echopaw had her pinned to the ground.

"Nicely done," Blisterwing told Echopaw. "Although I wonder how you would fare against a more competent enemy?" _Don't think too much of yourself._

Echopaw visibly deflated, but nodded and silently took her place. Specklepaw rolled to her paws and scurried to her own place, avoiding eye contact with the Dark Forest warriors. With a pang I realized that her fate wasn't looking too bright.

 _Bright. I wonder how Brightpaw's doing? She's so pretty, surely the Dark Forest will choose her for her looks alone. Not,_ I added quickly, _that a she-cat can't be just as capable as a tom._

Brightpaw had drilled the fact into my brain.

Adderpaw stood to his paws; I didn't miss the way he flexed his claws. "Come on, Flame-brain," he growled, and already my blood began to boil. _Calm down,_ I told myself as I followed Adderpaw to the center of the hollow. _Don't let him get to you; remember what Sleetpaw and Brightpaw have taught you about controlling your temper._

I focused on my breathing as my blood began to cool. It was easier to focus on details when I wasn't blinded by emotion. _Don't let Adderpaw get to you. Not right now._ I crouched down; my opponent did the same.

The clearing was silent until Blisterwing growled, " _Begin_."

Adderpaw and I lunged forward at the exact same time. He went for my throat with claws extended and I ducked so that he rolled across my back. I spun around with speed that only came by training, and I was rewarded when Adderpaw's eyes widened; he didn't know that I'd trained with Sleetpaw and Brightpaw for the last moon.

His surprise was short lived. Within moments he was lunging for me again, and this time I wasn't quick enough; I sidestepped but he still managed to graze my flank with his claws. _I can't play offense,_ I thought as I hissed in pain. _I'm gonna have to muscle him down!_

Instead of dodging his attacks I met them head-on, tooth for tooth. The warriors crowded around us and cheered when I landed a particularly hard blow to his muzzle. Adderpaw stumbled beneath the weight of the blow and I saw my chace; I snarled and leapt onto his back, and my weight pushed him onto the ground.

Adderpaw hissed and snarled and managed to bite my forepaw so hard that I yowled in pain, but it gave me an extra burst of strength. I freed my paw and planted both of them on his head so violently that I heard a _crack_ when his head hit the ground.

The warriors cheered even as bile rose in my throat. _W-wait, did I crack his skull?_ Suddenly I felt like I was watching Rowanpaw get torn to ribbons again. I didn't like him, but I didn't want to watch him die either. _Sunfrost, please let him be okay!_

I climbed off of Adderpaw and watched him hopefully. One warrior shoved me and cheered, "Just what I'd expect from you!" Like he was _proud_ of me.

Echopaw darted forward and began licking her littermate - her only brother, now. I held my breath and didn't dare to breath until Adderpaw gasped, and slowly stood to his paws. Nevermind the fact that his legs were trembling or his breathing was labored, he was _alive_.

Blisterwing hollored, "Echopaw and Flamepaw are the victors!"

I exhaled in relief. _Two tests down, one more to go._

 **Written in the Shadows**

Other than some scrapes and bruises, Adderpaw was fine. He walked a little slower than usual but insisted that he was well-enough to complete the final portion of the Culling.

That being said, I didn't miss the furious glares he threw my way. I wanted to apologize to him but my fight put me at the top and now wasn't the time to look soft. Especially not when the next test was the one that I was most concerned over.

Blisterwing led us deeper into the territory where prey was more abundant. It wasn't a secret that I was a poor hunter, even with Sleetpaw and Brightpaw's training. Sleetpaw said I was too impatient; Brightpaw said I lacked technique.

 _I have to perform well,_ I thought to myself. _I climbed the highest and I won my match, but the Dark Forest want the perfect apprentice. Adderpaw and Echopaw have both done well too. If I don't catch anything then Blisterwing will surely pick them._

And if he didn't choose me? I'd proven that I was strong and Blisterwing knew who my parents were. He would kill me without hesitation.

Blisterwing halted, then so did the rest of the patrol. He turned to face us but didn't immediately speak; he let his flinty gaze travel from apprentice to apprentice until it came to rest on me, and then his eyes narrowed.

"This is your final test," he began, and he could have sounded calm if his voice wasn't so hoarse. "Do well and you might find yourself apart of the strongest Clan in the forest. Do poorly and…" he trailed off, allowing us to fill in the blank.

"You four will go into the forest and hunt until sundown," Blisterwing continued. "Return with your prey, and whoever catches the most will be the victor. However, should you return empty-pawed, you will be _disqualified_." I really didn't like the sound of that.

Blisterwing raised his tail. I crouched down, sent to prayer to StarClan, and hoped that all of my training would pay off.

Blisterwing dropped his tail. I darted into the forest.

 **Written in the Shadows**

Update: Blisterwing was going to kill me.

I couldn't quit glancing at the slowly-setting sun as I uncovered my single, pitiful catch: a scrawny shrew that would surely find its' way to the bottom of any fresh-kill pile.

 _I'm sorry, Sunfrost. Tell Brightpaw that I'm sorry too, and that anything toms can do she-cats can do better. Tell Sleetpaw to learn how to smile; all he ever does is scowl or glare._

I picked up my shrew and inwardly groaned. There wasn't enough meat on its' bones to feed a newborn kit!

Just as I prepared myself for my death march, the undergrowth began to rustle. For a spit second I thought it was prey, but it was too large to be a mouse or a squirrel. Then, Echopaw emerged, all graceful and worried.

I blinked in confusion. "Uh, the meeting place is _that_ way," I told her.

"I'm not lost," she retorted swiftly. "How much prey did you catch?"

Shame made my pelt warm. "How much prey did _you_ catch?" I asked instead.

Echopaw huffed. "I asked you first!"

"Well I asked you second!"

She rolled her eyes, irritated. "Fine. I caught six pieces of prey: three mice, a sparrow, a shrew, and a squirrel."

My eyes widened until they rivaled the full moon. " _Six_?!" I echoed, incredulous. "Who catches six pieces of prey _in one hunt_?"

"Someone who's hunting for her life," Echopaw replied. She eyed the shrew between my jaws. "Please tell me that's not all you caught?"

I was silent for one, two, three heartbeats…

"Are you _trying_ to get yourself killed?" Echopaw demanded. "Have you not noticed that Blisterwing is cheering for your failure?"

"Oh gosh, _really_?" I drawled, sarcastic. "I thought I was his favorite."

The silver she-cat mumbled something bitterly underneath her breath, and then turned around and walked back into the undergrowth. More rustling, and when she returned she held a mouse and a shrew in her mouth. She dropped the catches at my paws and said, "here, tell Blisterwing you caught them."

 _Just when I thought I kinda sorta had Echopaw figured out…_ "But why?" I asked, a tad suspicious. Was she going to accuse me of stealing her prey? Was this her idea of revenge after I bested Adderpaw?

Echopaw lashed her tail once. "Because. Now do you want to be torn to ribbons or not?"

"No no, I wanna live," I replied quickly. I still wasn't sure I trusted Echopaw, but even if she _did_ accuse me of prey-stealing I would die either way. I tucked the remaining prey underneath my chin, and then shot Echopaw a grin. _If she is helping me then I should say,_ "Thanks."

The silver she-cat was already ducking back into the undergrowth. "Don't mention it," she replied. I got the feeling she meant it.

 **Written in the Shadows**

We arrived at the meeting place with mere seconds to spare. Adderpaw and Specklepaw were already waiting for us; two squirrels and a mouse sat in front of Adderpaw, and it looked like Specklepaw managed to catch a sparrow and a shrew.

 _And somehow, Echopaw managed to catch_ _six_ _pieces of prey._ That was amazing.

Blisterwing scowled when I dropped my three catches, but that scowl faded when Echopaw dropped her remaining four. He almost looked impressed, but the look disappeared as quickly as it came.

In his gravelly voice he began, "Echopaw is clearly the best hunter out of all of you. That gives her high marks." I glanced at Echopaw, who seemed to be torn between pride and defeat. She didn't want to go to the Dark Forest. "However, you have to be more than just a hunter to survive in _our_ Clan."

He stood up and began circling us. " _Flamepaw_ out performed all of you," he spat my name like an insult, but I didn't care; I was safe. "He climbed the highest, won his match, and caught three pieces of prey. Specklepaw-"

"Wait a moment!" Addepaw cried abruptly, outraged. "Flamepaw is the worst hunter in ThunderClan! He's more likely to catch _no prey_ than three pieces!" _Uh-oh. Adderpaw, shut-up shut-up shut-up!_ "Furthermore, two of his catches have my sister's scent on them, and Echopaw is the finest hunter I've ever seen. On the most important day of her life, she should have six or seven catches!"

"What are you implying?" One warrior growled. Blisterwing watched Adderpaw with interest.

Adderpaw lifted his chin and glared at me for all he was worth. "Flamepaw _stole_ my sister's catches!"

"I did not!" I protested. "I caught them myself!"

Blisterwing spun around to face Echopaw. "Is that true?" he demanded. "Did Flamepaw steal your prey?"

Echopaw was one of the most composed cats in ThunderClan; she didn't let anyone see her cry, or shout, or complain. It hit me that she wore a mask in front of her Clanmates. Right now, however, she looked scared for her life. I squeezed my eyes shut as I prepared for her answer. "No. He caught them himself."

My eyelids flew open. _What?_

" _Echopaw_!" Adderpaw hissed.

Blisterwing narrowed his dark eyes. "Did you _give him_ your prey?"

Echopaw raised her chin, but I noticed how she trembled. "No. He caught them himself."

Blisterwing hovered threateningly over Echopaw. "I don't like being lied to, _kitty_ ," he rumbled, and suddenly I realized why his voice was so hoarse.

Echopaw's green eyes widened, like she was looking death right in its' face, and when Blisterwing's claws slid out I couldn't contain myself any longer. "I stole her prey!" I cried, effectively stealing Blisterwing's harsh gaze. "I only caught one of the shrews and I didn't want to return so empty-pawed, so I stole her prey."

Echopaw glared at me (" _you mouse-brain, what are you doing?! You'll get us both killed!_ ) but something about Blisterwing's expression shifted. He looked slightly more thoughtful than murderous now.

"You stole her prey?" he repeated. I nodded. "Interesting. _So_ , either you're _both_ liars, or one of you is a liar and one of you is a cheating thief."

The urge to close my eyes so that I wouldn't see my death coming was tempting, but I had never given up before. If Blisterwing thought he could kill me, then he better prepare himself for the fight of his life. "A liar and a thief." Blisterwing hummed. "Well, this complicates _everything_. See, I'd planned on killing you, Flamepaw, and taking Adderpaw and Specklepaw back to the Dark Forest with me, however," he flashed a sinister smirk, "the Dark Forest always has room for one more liar and one more thief."

 _What?_ "Flamepaw, Echopaw, welcome to the Dark Forest."

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **Did Echopaw give Flamepaw her prey to help him, or to help herself?**

* * *

 **Review Replies:**

 **Guest - the Dark Forest _can_ change your name if they want to, but I doesn't happen often. **

**LaurenRiverSister - Crowpaw's act of defiance wasn't solely because he and Briarpaw played moss ball as kits, and more to do with the fact that he didn't want to hurt his kithood friend. Also, it's never too late for a Runningpaw-Theory! I love reading them! The "Forestpelt is Runningpaw" theory seems to be popular, as does the "Onestrike is Runningpaw" theory... I can neither confirm nor deny if they are true, but continue to keep an eye on those two ;)**

 **BrightMind - several users have mentioned that they didn't expect me to write something so dark, so I guess I should be clear: this is a dark fic. I've always enjoyed reading darker fics but this is my first time writing one, and if that makes you uncomfortable then I'm sorry. The deal with Briarpaw was disturbing to read, it was disturbing to write, but the Dark Forest warriors _are not good cats_. I can't just keep repeating that though, I have to show readers _why_ they're not good cats. This fic will certainly have it's light-hearted, comic-relief moments, but it's going to be much different from my other writing. You've been warned. **

* * *

**We're finally done with the Culling!**

 **Out of the three, Flamepaw's was the hardest to write simply because halfway through the chapter I decided I was bored. I tried to switch it up a little with the tree climbing and the interaction between Flamepaw and Echopaw, and I hope you guys like this chapter more than I do!**

 **So, Flamepaw and Echopaw are going to the Dark Forest! I don't think that's much of a surprise to anyone, but I do hope Echopaw's sudden charity caught you off guard. I don't believe we've seen the last of Adderpaw, and as for Blisterwing... he's a very important kitty. Thoughts on him?**

 **Any predictions or theories you want to voice before we head into the Dark Forest? Depending on chapter length I'm not sure if I'll include everything I want to next chapter, but if everything goes according to plan, we'll get a Sleetpaw point of view; an introduction to the Dark Forest; and a sneak peak of favorite character in the whole fic! Sound promising enough?**

 **I have a new poll on my profile, so be sure to vote on that! I created an AskFM account as well as a Tumblr account so that I can interact with you guys more, so if you have either of those then feel free to drop by and ask me a question!**

 **Reviews are better than sleeping in on Saturday mornings... happy Saturday!**


	10. Welcome to the Dark Forest

_"The DF have a camp a little ways away from the clans, where most of them live. The apprentices leave behind their styles of hunting, fighting, etc. They're basically ripped away from their families and don't see them again for moons, and when they do, they're cold killing-machines. Not only does this break the clans spirits, but it also lessens their numbers and makes sure that the strongest cats are on the Dark Forest's side." - PM to Jeffrey Dahmer, Feb. 12, 2015_

* * *

 **Welcome to the Dark Forest**

* * *

 **Sleetpaw**

" _Runningpaw, I'm afraid."_

" _What are you afraid of?"_

" _I dunno, I'm just afraid. I miss mama."_

" _I know. I miss her too."_

" _Does Stormwind?"_

" _I think so."_

" _I watch him sometimes… he doesn't eat anymore…"_

" _Maybe he just eats when you aren't looking?"_

" _I guess. Runningpaw, who's going to protect us from those stinky Dark Forest cats now that mama and Stormwind are gone?"_

" _I'll protect us, Sleetkit! I'll never let anything hurt you, I promise."_

I shoved the conversation out of my mind and tore viciously into a frog. I wasn't hungry, but I couldn't lose focus now. I'd passed the Culling, impressed the Dark Forest warriors, and now that phase one was complete it was onto phase two.

Destroying Runningpaw was my number one priority, but I needed Sunfrost's StarClan abilities to aid me. In return, he wanted me to play nice with others and complete his quest. I was on track to fulfilling my end of the bargain, though it would do me no good if Flamepaw and Brightpaw failed on their end.

As I was preparing my back-up plan, Icepaw slumped down beside me. I wrinkled my nose at the tangey scent of blood; _Marshpaw's blood_. Inwardly the scent made me wither uncomfortably, and I scolded myself for behaving like such a kit. _If I want to survive in the Dark Forest, I can't get squeamish whenever I scent blood._

Still, it was unnerving to glance at the she-cat and note that her once-white fur was coated in sticky, faded crimson blood. I snapped, "why haven't you washed your pelt yet? It's disrespectful to Marshpaw."

"At least Marshpaw's blood didn't drench the dirt," Icepaw mumbled, without meeting my eye. "Crowpaw and Briarpaw blLed to death in the marshes. You don't care about _their_ blood."

"I-. I don't care about Marshpaw's blood either. Just clean your pelt. It's disgusting." With that, I stood to my paws and padded a few fox-lengths away from the she-cat.

Crowpaw and Briarpaw's deaths were unfortunate, but they brought their fates upon themselves. Crowpaw refused to comply with the Dark Forest; Briarpaw was too slow to attack. They both knew the consequences of upsetting these cats, thus their deaths were their own fault.

Rustling in the undergrowth caught my attention; a new patrol trickled into the clearing and I quickly identified them as the ThunderClan patrol. I immediately began to search for a bright ginger pelt, and when I saw Flamepaw I exhaled a breath that I didn't realize I'd been holding. _So he did it. He actually passed the Culling._

Flamepaw's gaze roamed the clearing until it landed on me. He grinned, and I wanted to scold him for displaying any sort of enthusiasm; was he _trying_ to give us away?

Flamepaw sidestepped around the others as he made his way towards me. "Mind if I share your frog?" he asked. "I'm starving!" I realized that he was trying to mask his connection to me and likely didn't want any piece of my frog.

Still, I was nothing if not selfless.

I smirked slightly and nudged the frog towards him. "Of course! You can have the entire thing, since you're _starving_."

His reaction was comical. Flamepaw stared at me with wide green eyes and an expression of disbelief. "Uhh… thank you." He looked around to see who was watching us (a couple of warriors were), steeled his resolve, then took a small bite of frog.

He tried to mask his gagging by coughing and for the first time in a long time, I actually wanted to laugh. "How is it?" I asked instead, smirking.

" _Delicious_ ," Flamepaw replied between gritted teeth. "But I would hate to eat all of your lunch-"

"I'm not hungry. Please, have the rest!" It looks could kill, I might actually be dead.

As Flamepaw continued to nibble unhappily on the frog, the undergrowth began to rustle again. I scented the air and was met with the smell of fish; RiverClan. The warriors poured into the clearing and I was pleased when Brightpaw stepped out, chin held high and eyes dull.

She scanned the clearing, noticed Flamepaw and me, and mumbled something to her golden-furred companion. Flamepaw perked up considerably when he spotted the she-cat and waved his tail in greeting.

"Hello," he meowed pleasantly, and I barely resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "Are you here to share our frog?"

Brightpaw blinked, caught off guard when she noticed the half-eaten frog between Flamepaw's paws. "Do ThunderClanners like frog?" she asked, as she wrinkled her nose in disgust.

The ginger tom visibly deflated. "No, we don't," he mumbled. "It's Sleetpaw's, he's forcing me to finish it."

"Oh!" The creamy-colored she-cat perked up. "Well, if we're doing it as a favor for Sleetpaw…" She bent her head and took a large bite, and this time Flamepaw couldn't mask his gagging. When she lifted her head and exclaimed, "hey, it's not so bad!" I thought Flamepaw would throw up.

I scowled and snatched my frog back. It was no fun if they enjoyed it. "Get your own frog," I grumbled.

Brightpaw seemed undeterred and shrugged. "So," she meowed, looking between Flamepaw and I, "we did it."

"Let's not celebrate yet," I replied softly. "We aren't in their camp yet." Flamepaw mumbled something about being a killjoy. "How did your assessments go? Did you pick up anything useful?"

"My patrol leader already hates me," Flamepaw helpfully supplied. "Which isn't great, because I'm pretty sure he's an important cat."

I scanned the clearing and frowned when I sat Flamepaw's patrol leader. "The dark brown tom with the scars?"

"That's the one."

I sighed, frustrated. "If the way that warriors are giving their reports to him mean anything, then I would agree with you; he's important and you certainly do not want his attention."

The ginger tom cringed. "Too late. He doesn't like my parents."

Brightpaw glanced at him. "Are your parents important cats?" she asked.

Her question seemed to catch Flamepaw off guard. "You mean you don't-?" he looked between us and then shrugged. "Not really, they just fought in the first rebellion."

"Most ThunderClan warriors did," I nodded. My father did as well. "It shouldn't be a big deal. But did you overhear anything _important_?"

"I did," Brightpaw suddenly meowed. I turned to her as she explained, "two of the warriors were talking about the other RiverClan apprentice, Duskpaw, and said that if she survived the training camp she would be sent to the mountains."

Flamepaw frowned. "Training camp- wait, _survive_?"

I glanced at the mountains behind us. "What are they doing in the mountains?" I wondered aloud. "No life can grow there. It's barren."

"Maybe they're looking for something?" Brightpaw suggested.

 _Or someone,_ my eyes narrowed.

"Wait," Flamepaw meowed abruptly. "On the way here, some of the warriors were talking about who would 'get a group' this season. Is that important?"

I recalled something Onestrike said to me. "I think so. My patrol leader, Onestrike, mentioned a group. _His_ group."

Flamepaw's eyes lit up. "Onestrike? They mentioned him! Apparently he's an important cat as well."

"Any other names?" Brightpaw inquired.

The ThunderClan tom wrinkled his nose thoughtfully. "Yeah, a couple: Silversmoke, Forestpelt-" _Forestpelt?_ "-annd someone else…"

Rustling bushes interrupted his train of thought, and the final patrol - WindClan - appeared. Flamepaw's patrol leader stood up and announced, "Alright, that's all of the patrols! Leaders, follow me back to camp!" The dark brown tom started shoving through the undergrowth and I found myself dreading the trek ahead.

I turned to Flamepaw and Brightpaw and hissed, "we can't draw attention to ourselves! Split up and walk with your Clanmates."

Flamepaw glanced at a sulky silver tabby and replied, "Uh, I think I'll walk by myself."

"Whatever, just don't draw attention to yourself," I meowed. "We'll meet again when it's convenient. _Go_."

 **Written in the Stars**

" _Runningpaw, did you see the scratch on Forestpaw's nose?"_

" _Of course I did. Who do you think gave it to him?"_

" _Wow,_ _you_ _did that? You're such a good fighter, Runningpaw! Do you think… do you think I'll ever be as good as you?"_

" _You can never be as good as the_ _best_ _, little brother… but maybe you can be the_ _second best_ _."_

" _You really think so?!"_

" _Maybe, if you train harder than everyone else."_

" _I will, I will! Just watch me!"_

I shook the memory off and strided forward.

 _I can't get distracted now,_ I scolded myself. _I'm about to face Runningpaw for the first time since he- since he left. How is he going to react when he sees me? Is he going to pretend he doesn't know me, will he speak to me? What if he attacks me?_ I reminded myself to breathe. _No, he won't attack me like that. But he won't expect me to attack him, either; he's_ _always_ _thought I'm weak._

 _Maybe_ _I_ _should attack_ _him_ _._

Sunfrost suddenly thought, _don't you dare. If you blow your cover as soon as you step into camp, then this mission will end before it even begins!_

I grumbled a response and continued forward.

 **Written in the Stars**

" _Runningpaw! Stormwind is-is-"_

" _Be quiet, Sleetkit!"_

" _But Stormwind-! He's dead! I-I'm alone now!"_

" _Calm down, little brother. You're never alone as long as we're together."_

I could tell that we were nearing camp by the way that the leader - Blisterwing, apparently - speed up. By this point we were running through the undergrowth, and I hissed as branches whacked me in the face and the undergrowth tripped me up. How did ThunderClan warriors _do it_?

"Faster!" One of the warriors called, his voice bleeding with adrenaline. I gritted my teeth and forced myself to run faster, and my thoughts tried to keep up.

 _After moons of plotting my revenge and I_ _still_ _don't know what I'll do when I see him again! I have to surprise him; I have to prove myself! Or do I let him assume that I'm still a weak, pathetic kit? No no, he knows I've been training for this moment. Or does he?_

I felt like I was slowly being pulled apart. My heart thundered in my ears.

"Almost there!" One warrior hollered gleefully. "Get ready, kittens!"

 _Ready, I have to be ready. I won't attack him, I'll let him make the first strike. But does that first strike make the entire battle lean in his favor? I'm overthinking this, but it's so simple!_

I reminded myself to breathe again and inhaled a gulp of air.

A large brown-and-black warrior shoved past me and sprinted to the lead, yowling. My eyes widened as the other warriors followed his lead, each yowling like they were charging into battle.

 _The camp is near; Runningpaw is near. No, he's a warrior by now, he won't be called Runningpaw. He'll have a a warrior name. I have to be ready._

Suddenly I was slammed by the scent of Dark Forest warriors, so powerful that it was overwhelming. We were here.

" _I'm not ready_ ," I gasped, and slid to a halt. _I'm not ready I'm not ready I'm not ready he's going to_ _kill me_ _if I step into that camp-_

 _Breathe, Sleetpaw!_

Cats snarled and hissed as they were forced to weave around me, but I hardly noticed. A cream-colored pelt stopped beside me. " _Sleetpaw_?" Brightpaw cried. "What are you doing?!"

Flamepaw appeared at my other side and hissed, "In case you didn't know, _this_ is called drawing attention to yourself!"

"I'm not ready," I huffed as I shook my head. _No no no he's been preparing for this moment, he_ _knew_ _I would come after him, he's so much stronger now-_

"None of us are ready, Sleetpaw," Brightpaw meowed desperately. "But you can't just stand here! We have to follow them _now_!"

I shook my head again. "I-I'm not ready-"

"Too bad," Flamepaw growled before he shoved me forward.

I tried to dig my claws into the ground, but instead I caught one on a branch. I hissed and tried to free it, but when Flamepaw shoved me _again_ I tripped and rolled-

And rolled right into the Dark Forest camp.

Flamepaw, Brightpaw, and the remaining cats behind us poured into the camp right behind me. My breath hitched in my throat when I noticed just how many cats called his camp _their camp_ ; it seemed like hundreds!

Muscular, battle-scarred warriors prowled the camp and hissed when another warrior got too close. Pelts bristled, tails were bushed- and there were so many different pelts! I scanned the camp for one specific, black-as-night pelt. _Get ready, he's here somewhere!_

 _Keep moving,_ Sunfrost thought.

Brightpaw hissed quietly in my ear, "We have to follow the patrols."

It was some miracle that my paws weren't frozen to the ground. I swallowed and followed one of a patrol leaders, the WindClan leader, to a large clearing in the center of the camp. Warriors clustered all around us, eyeing us with curiosity and cruelty. I could hear my heartbeat thundering in my ears. _Where is he?_

"You alright, Sleetpaw?" Brightpaw whispered.

My breathing felt labored. "I can hear my heartbeat in my ears," I murmered back.

"Impossible," Flamepaw mumbled. "You don't have a heart."

Brightpaw _whacked_ Flamepaw with her tail. "We're all anxious," she whispered to me. "You're doing fine. Keep moving." I nodded.

The camp was large, much larger than ShadowClan's camp. It felt like forever until we finally came to a halt. I pulled my gaze away from an ordinary black-pelted tom and observed the clearing. It was spacious and empty of undergrowth, just dead grass. In front of us loomed a tall, tall rock, and I noticed a den carved into the side.

I managed to drag my thoughts away from Runningpaw to think, _this must be where the Dark Forest conducts business. That den must belong to the leader._

 _And we must be just in time for a ceremony._

One of the warriors weaved between us apprentices and hissed, "spread apart! Lionslayer will want to see each of you."

"Lionslayer," Flamepaw echoed. "I know that name." He was the Dark Forest leader, most infamous for murdering his previous leader in his sleep and stealing his authority.

"Quiet!" Brightpaw hushed him, her green gaze trained on Blisterwing.

The scarred-tom padded surely towards the foot of the boulder and sat down. He raised his voice above the anxious chatter and hollered, "Show some respect for your leader!"

At once, the clearing fell silent. It was rather impressive, considering every cat in camp was squeezed into that clearing. _Wait, not every cat… where is Runningpaw?!_

Suddenly thunder thrummed underneath my paws. Then again, and again, and again. I looked around and realized that the warriors were pounding their paws against the ground until it sounded like the steady beat of war drums.

Blisterwing hollered, " _Lionslayer_!"

" _LIONSLAYER! LIONSLAYER! LIONSLAYER!_ " The warriors chanted.

Suddenly there was movement in the shadowy den. I narrowed my eyes, only for them to widen until they resembled the full moon. From the den outstepped the largest warrior I'd ever seen before.

Lionslayer was a dusty golden tom with a serpent-like tail and too many scars to count. One of his ears were torn in half; he looked like the kind of warrior in control of the Dark Forest.

"Great StarClan," Flamepaw whispered weakly. " _That's_ who we have to fight?"

I shushed him, never once taking my eyes off of Lionslayer. The warriors continued to chant as he prowled and then leapt on top of the boulder. They cheered as he observed them, dark eyes moving from cat to cat. His gaze lingered on the new apprentices and I resisted the urge to shrink into the dirt; _those eyes…_

Finally he roared, " _Silence_!"

The warriors immediately ceased. Blisterwing sat up a little taller. Lionslayer's expression morphed into one of a sinister hunter who was toying with his prey. "Warriors of the Dark Forest, once again the Culling has been completed!"

Cheers met his announcement, but Lionslayer signaled for silence. "Every other season, we assess the Clans' apprentices and select the two we think will strengthen our ranks. It looks like this season has produced another successful harvest."

To my right, Brightpaw simmered. " _Harvest_?" she mumbled angrily. "What, like we're _plants_?"

"However," Lionslayer continued, "the Grouping Ceremony will have to wait. Right now we have apprentices that must be rewarded for their _survival_ ," he smirked. "Apprentices, come forward."

 _Grouping Ceremony? Apprentices? Where is Runningpaw?!_

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a group of cats begin to rise. They were all muscular and scarred, and their eyes gleamed with the trademark Dark Forest cruelty. One by one they stood up like a unit, then marched to the front of the tall boulder. A few of the Dark Forest warriors joined them.

Lionslayer stayed where he was, but Blisterwing obeyed an unspoken command and moved to stand beside a sturdy brown tom. The Dark Forest leader flashed a yellow-fanged smirk. "Clawstick, you still have a full group. Don't tell me you've gone soft?"

The brown tom scowled as his Clanmates chuckled harshly. "My group is strong," he replied. "They will each make you proud, Lionslayer."

"They better," Lionslayer said, ominous. "Blisterwing."

Clawstick stepped backwards as Blisterwing took his place, and laid his tail on an apprentice's back - a black and white tom. Lionslayer scrutinized him for a moment, then nodded. "Toadpaw, you have completed your training. From this moment on you will be called Toadscar. The Dark Forest welcomes you into our ranks."

Blisterwing bit down on Toadscar's shoulder, and the tom flinched slightly as his fangs punctured flesh. The Dark Forest warriors stomped once. Blisterwing gestured for Toadscar to join an invisible group to the left.

Blisterwing moved to the next apprentice; a steel gray she-cat. _A she-cat?_ I mused. _Does the Dark Forest demand that she become a queen, or will she be a warrior?_

Lionslayer sized her up for a long moment, then nodded. "Slatepaw, you have completed your training. From this moment on you will be called Slatefall." Blisterwing repeated the same process with Slatefall that he did with Toadscar, except he directed her towards a seperate group.

The warrior ceremony made sense as it went on. Blisterwing, the "deputy", would lay his tail on the back of the apprentice while Lionslayer gave them their warrior name. After they received their new name the warriors would stomp once in approval, and Blisterwing would subtly direct them to one of the groups.

The first group was made of only two warriors: Toadscar and Glintwing.

The second group was much larger: Ratfang, Slatefall, Snareclaw, Stainpelt.

I narrowed my eyes as Blisterwing directed the last warrior, Splotchfur, to join the second group. What was the difference between the groups? Why were they important?

Once Splotchfur joined the second group, Lionslayer nodded to them and said, "follow the path we have marked for you, and remember where your loyalty falls." _That's a threat._

The large group stood to their paws and immediately sprinted out of camp, tails streaming behind them as the Dark Forest warriors pounded their paws against the ground in cheer. I stared after the group until the last tail-tip disappeared. _This must have something to do with the mountains. But what?_

Lionslayer flicked his tail dismissively, and then Toadscar and Glintwing stood up as well. Instead of following the others they joined the throng of Dark Forest warriors. _They must be staying. Why would Lionslayer keep only two warriors, one of which will likely become a queen? And where in this blasted camp is Runningpaw?!_

So many questions, and not nearly enough answers. However questions were the least of my worries at the moment; Lionslayer leapt down from the tall boulder and strided towards us, eyes dark.

To my right, Brightpaw went rigid. To my left, Flamepaw dug his claws into the ground. I raised my chin and refused to display an ounce of weakness in front of this cat.

The dusty-golden warrior stopped at one end of the group and stared straight into a cat's eyes; one of the WindClan apprentices. I begrudgingly gave the ginger-and-brown tom credit when he didn't immediately shrink into the dirt.

"You're WindClan, aren't you?" Lionslayer purred, an unnatural-sounding rumble.

The tom nodded silently.

"What's your name?"

"Leafpaw."

Lionslayer's dark amber gaze drifted to the other WindClan apprentice; a gray-and-brown tom with a bobbed tail. Unlike his companion, this tom was shaking like a leaf in the wind. "What's _your_ name?" Lionslayer asked him.

"B-B-Beetlepaw," the tom stuttered.

Lionslayer smirked. "Nice to meet you, _B-B-Beetlepaw_." The Dark Forest warriors howled with laughter. "B-B-Beetlepaw" looked like he was going to pass out.

I imagined Lionslayer would toy with the frightened apprentice a little longer, but he didn't seem to waste any time. He moved on to Icepaw next, took an interest in her blood-stained pelt, and asked what her name was.

He was doing quick assessments of all of us, obviously. Giving us quick once-overs, asking us our names; he was preparing to assign us to a mentor. _Or… a group? Is that what Onestrike meant earlier? Does one mentor train more than one apprentice?_

"What's your name?"

"Echopaw."

"Mhm. What's _your_ name?"

" _Duskpaw_."

Brightpaw was next.

Lionslayer stopped in front of Brightpaw, gave her a once-over, and I noted the way she stiffened underneath his gaze. He asked, "What's your name?"

"Brightpaw," she replied calmly.

Lionslayer nodded slowly before muttering, "A lot of she-cats this season."

And then he was standing in front of me. The Dark Forest leader gave me a once-over, and I grit my jaw when his gaze lingered on the black of my pelt. _Something's wrong._ He raised his dark amber eyes until they bore into mine. "Who are your parents?" he asked, deliberately calm.

I met his gaze and replied, "Swiftstrike and Dapplebird of ShadowClan."

Lionslayer didn't react. "I don't believe I know those names."

"They both died in the first rebellion."

"Aha," he hummed. "They were traitors."

I nodded.

"And your name, then?"

"Sleetpaw."

Lionslayer eyed me for a moment longer before he meowed, "Welcome to the Dark Forest, Sleetpaw." And then he moved on.

I thought I could breathe a sigh of relief when he didn't see through my lie, until I remembered who was next. "Well, don't _you_ look familiar." Lionslayer sneered at Flamepaw. "What's _your_ name?"

Flamepaw stood up to his paws and snarled, " _Your successor._ I'm going to murder you in your sleep and then _I_ will reign over the Dark Forest!"

I choked on my own gasp. Brightpaw groaned. The other apprentices stiffened and the warriors whispered fiercely to one another.

I expected Lionslayer to slit Flamepaw's throat right then and there. But instead he threw his head back and howled with laughter: a gritty, bitter sound. Flamepaw stared at Lionslayer with all the hatred in the world, and when his muscles tensed as if about to pounce, I nearly jumped Flamepaw myself.

Then Lionslayer shot forward, shoved his muzzle against Flamepaw's ear, and mumbled something violent. Even as I strained to listen I couldn't hear what he said, but I watched all of the fight fade from Flamepaw's fiery green eyes.

When Lionslayer stepped back and asked, "What's your name?"

He answered meekly. "Flamepaw."

 **Written in the Stars**

" _What was that_?" I hissed to Flamepaw, as Lionslayer scaled the tall boulder once again. " _Are you trying to get us all killed_?" The ginger tom refused to raise his gaze from the ground.

Brightpaw whispered urgently in my ear, asking what was wrong and if Flamepaw was okay, but I shook her off. Now wasn't the time to fret over the poor lizard-brain for acting like a fool.

Lionslayer cleared his voice and demanded our attention. Once everyone was silent, he began. "Apprentices, you have displayed skill and ambition during the Culling, but don't become comfortable; you aren't safe _yet_. The Dark Forest does not tolerate your Clans' weaknesses, and if we believe that you've got too much _heart;_ too much _sympathy;_ if you're too _weak_ for the Dark Forest then we _will_ kill you."

" _Or worse,_ " one of the warriors murmured. Brightpaw shuddered.

"From this day forward, you will train as Dark Forest apprentices. You will be assigned to a group: one mentor, three apprentices. If one of you is killed during training then we will not mourn for you."

The concept of a group caught me off guard. _So that's Onestrike meant. He wants me in his group, along with two other apprentices._ I didn't dare glance at the two cats beside me. _What are the odds that the three of us will share a group?_

"Leafpaw," Lionslayer suddenly boomed. "Step forward." The WindClan tom silently obeyed. "Icepaw, Beetlepaw, step forward." They obeyed him as well. Icepaw's pelt was matted with blood. "You three will train as a group. Your mentor will be Silversmoke."

A pale gray tabby tom emerged from the throng of warriors and padded smugly towards his new group; clearly, being chosen as mentor was a high honor. _Is Runningpaw going to mentor a group? Certainly he must be skilled enough._

"Duskpaw, Echopaw, step forward," Lionslayer continued. I grunted when both Brightpaw and Flamepaw stiffened against me. From the group of apprentices, two she-cats stepped forward; one was golden-colored with burning eyes, the other was a sleek, silver tabby. "Sparrowpaw, step forward."

"Sparrowpaw?" Flamepaw echoed, confused.

Suddenly a long-legged, dark brown tabby padded forwards. His amber eyes were dull; as if he were bored with the proceedings. He couldn't have been any older than us.

Lionslayer looked at the tom. "Sparrowpaw, your other group members were not fitted to the Dark Forest, and thus you're in need of a new group. Duskpaw, Echopaw, Sparrowpaw, you three will train as a group. Your mentor will be Onestrike."

 _Onestrike!_ The brown-pawed tom was already joining his group, and although his stride was confident, his features were twisted. Mentoring a group might be an honor, but it was clear that this wasn't the group he expected.

"Sleetpaw, Flamepaw, Brightpaw, step forward."

 _It's our turn, and we're a group together!_ It was a fortunate turn of events, but our luck could be running thin. _Who will our mentor be?_

The three of us stepped forward at once; the Dark Forest warriors shifted and hissed to each other, and their suspicious gazes provoked a glare in return. They weren't Runningpaw, and I wasn't scared of them.

Lionslayer's rumble commanded my attention. "You three will train as a group. Your mentor will be-" _I held my breath-_ "Wolfmask."

I returned my attention to the throng of warriors. _Wolfmask? I don't know that name._ The Dark Forest warriors parted once more, and outstepped-

No one.

Lionslayer cleared his throat. " _I said,_ your mentor will be _Wolfmask_."

Still, no warrior stepped forward.

Lionslayer snarled, " _Wolfmask_!"

The clearing was deadly silent.

Lionslayer glared at Blisterwing but the other warrior shrugged in response, clearly just as lost as his leader.

Finally, once it became clear that "Wolfmask" wasn't going to grace us with his presence, Lionslayer moved on. He assigned the Dark Forest-born apprentices to their groups. Then he gave a rousing conclusion that inspired his warriors and chilled the apprentices to our bones, and announced that training would begin tomorrow.

The other groups followed their mentors out of the clearing. Brightpaw, Flamepaw and I shared hesitant glances.

"So," Flamepaw finally meowed, "welcome to the Dark Forest. We made it, guys."

"Why does it feel like our quest is only just beginning?" Brightpaw sighed. "And _where_ is our mentor?"

I shook my head. "Maybe this is a joke. Lionslayer doesn't seem fond of any of us." I shot Flamepaw a glare. "Although he might be onto something. What was that stunt you pulled?!"

Flamepaw avoided my piercing gaze. "Just trying to show some of that infamous Dark Forest ambition, that's all. Come on, let's follow the other groups. We can meet our mentor in the morning."

He started after the other groups without looking back. Brightpaw and I shared a glance; concern pooled in her pale green eyes. "What do you think Lionslayer whispered to him?" she asked. "I've never seen Flamepaw look so- _so defeated_ before."

I grunted. "That's not important right now. We need to follow him and get as much information about this place before tomorrow. I have questions, and I want answers."

Brightpaw nodded. We followed Flamepaw without another word, both of us lost in our own thoughts.

 _Where did the patrol of new warriors go, and does it have something to do with the mountains? Why are there groups instead of the traditional mentor-apprentice method? Who is Wolfmask, and why did he not show up to such an important meeting?_

 _Where is Runningpaw, and does he know I'm here?_

So many questions, and not nearly enough answers.

 **Written in the Stars**

As the sun began to set behind the mountains, the steady buzz of activity slowed down to a lull; queens ushered their kits to their nests, warriors finished their duties, and the night guards took their positions. Soon the only sounds came from the Pit.

Lionslayer sat atop the Tall Ledge and watched his "Clan" through narrowed eyes. The Culling was the most important day of the season, and tomorrow a fresh batch of Clan-scum would undergo their transformation to ruthless Dark Forest warriors; or, for some, they would take one more step towards their untimely deaths.

Blisterwing cleared his throat from beneath the Tall Ledge. Lionslayer's dark gaze scanned the camp one final time before he descended the rock and joined his second-in-command at the bottom.

The dark brown, battle-scarred tom dipped his head. "One more Culling taken care of."

Lionslayer hummed in response.

"A few of the apprentices seem promising. Not the skinny WindClan tom or the ShadowClan she-cat, but-"

"Was that blood matted in her fur?"

"Yes. Onestrike said she killed her sparring opponent; apparently he was twice her size and supposed to be an easy victor."

"Hm. Is she underestimated, or insane?"

"Onestrike leaned towards the latter."

"Interesting. Keep an eye on that one. She may need to join the Pit."

Blisterwing nodded. "Of course, Lionslayer."

The toms fell silent after that. Lionslayer could sense his second-in-command wanted to say something but was holding his tongue. Suddenly pawsteps sounded from behind them, and a scent that he instantly placed.

A gray tom with dark tabby markings sat down beside Lionslayer. "Lionslayer, Blisterwing. I heard you two missed me."

"Where were you?" Blisterwing demanded. "You missed the Culling Ceremony!"

"Oh no, that's not possible. The Culling Ceremony is _next_ season." The tom leaned in towards Lionslayer and murmured, "I think it's time to throw Blisterwing to the Pit, don't you agree?"

"Wolfmask," Blisterwing growled.

Lionslayer gestured for his second-in-command to silence. He turned towards the gray tabby tom and said, "You knew you were going to receive a group, Wolfmask. You made me look like a fool!"

"You? A fool?" Wolfmask repeated incredulously. " _Never._ "

" _Wolfmask_!" Lionslayer snarled, and finally the warrior seemed to take him seriously. "Is the Culling a simple matter to you? It's the most important day of leaf-fall, and mentoring a group is an honor!"

"If groups are so important then why do you continue to choose me as a mentor?" Wolfmask challenged him. "With what just happened in the mountains, I would think you want as many apprentices alive as possible."

The golden-pelted warrior shook his head, irritated. "If you could train just _one_ apprentice to your standard-"

"None of them are strong enough. Clan blood is weak blood."

"I've given you a group of pureblood apprentices before. They all died within the moon."

Wolfmask snorted. "One had a fear of drowning, one couldn't hunt to keep herself alive, and the other died from _white-cough_. They were no stronger than Clan-scum."

"You've been given an exceptional group this season," Blisterwing cut in. "The other mentors envy you."

Wolfmask raised a brow. "I doubt that."

"It's true," Blisterwing insisted. "At the very least your group is the most interesting. Two toms and a she-cat; the she-cat is spirited, more spirited than half of the toms; the black tom is perfectly skilled, and the other tom is the son of your- _friends_."

The gray tom sat up immediately. That was news. "You're positive it's him?"

Blisterwing nodded. "He all but announced it to the entire camp during the ceremony."

Lionslayer frowned. "The black tom - Sleetpaw. Did he seem strange to you?" Wolfmask didn't _dare_ react to _that_ name.

The second-in-command shook his head. "He glanced around a lot, but they were all searching for familiar faces. Why? Did you sense something, Lionslayer?"

The golden-pelted tom was quiet for a few moments, and then, "I don't know. Find Nettlewhisker and ask him if he knows Swiftstrike or Dapplebird of ShadowClan. I want to see if his story checks out."

Blisterwing stood to his paws. "Right away, Lionslayer." He shot Wolfmask one more cautious glance, and the gray tom thought that Blisterwing shouldn't be worried about _him_.

Wolfmask and Lionslayer watched the warrior pad away silently. Then Lionslayer remarked, "maybe it is time to throw him to the Pit."

"Oh? You think he's plotting something?"

"He will be soon."

"If you're growing paranoid, I would get rid of Onestrike first. I never have trusted that cat. Too ambitious, if you ask me."

Lionslayer glanced at the gray tom. "Who would replace Blisterwing, then?"

Wolfmask ignored the not-so-subtle hint and instead replied, "send me to the mountains."

"No. You're needed here."

Wolfmask lashed his tail. "Why? Because you _want_ more apprentices dead?"

"I don't think you'll kill this group so easily. They remind me of a few cats."

Three faces appeared in Wolfmask's head right then; they were younger and brighter but no less innocent. "I'm sure you're mistaken. History does not repeat itself, Lionslayer."

The golden-pelted warrior stood to his paws and flicked Wolfmask with his tail. "For your sake, I hope you're right. Get some sleep, Wolfmask. You have a busy day tomorrow."

Then he disappeared into his shadowy den, and left Wolfmask alone with his thoughts.

* * *

 **Question of the Day**

 **What do you think is the situation with Runningpaw? Why does Sleetpaw want him dead, and where is he?**

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 **Review Replies:**

 **DappledleafTheBootiful: I certainly wasn't drawing inspiration from Heathertail, but I can see where they're similar, for sure! Echopaw is a layered character, and as the story progresses, we'll peel those layers back one by one. I think it's interesting that you already ship Flamepaw and Brightpaw; I was wondering what people were beginning to ship!**

 **Cara Lee: Rest assured, there _is_ a reason that WindClan isn't participating in this quest. I just can't disclose that information right now because it's a minor spoiler.**

 **Runningflight2001 - I'm really glad you liked the last chapter so much! Thank you for pointing out that quote - I love when readers mention their favorite lines/scenes/etc. I was particularly pound of that one myself :) You hit the nail on the head with Spottedpaw; she would make an ideal queen. As for Flamepaw's parents, the best I can explain it is that their situation is very "remind me to forget you", if that makes sense? Everyone remembers them, but they don't dwell on them, so they fade. StarClan cats don't fade after everyone _forgets_ about them, they fade once everyone stops _trying_ to keep their memory alive. The 'fading' method is a bit flawed on my part, so I'm still working on that. **

**Finally, you were spot on with your analysis with Echopaw! She's a complicated kitty.**

* * *

 **Oohh boy, we're finally in the Dark Forest! This is where a lot of different characters come into play.**

 **A lot of you guys mention that Sleetpaw is too robotic, too unfeeling, especially after his Culling. I think this chapter proved that he's still just as 'human' as everyone else; he's just trying to hide it. I would say that Flamepaw wears his heart on his sleeve, Brightpaw tries to be unfeeling but simply can't, and Sleetpaw has triggers.**

 **We met Wolfmask! He's my favorite character in the entire fic, and I think you guys will like him as well. He has an interesting backstory for sure and as for his personality... we'll just say that his warrior name is very fitting.**

 **I'm sure you all noticed that the line breaks read "Written in the Stars" now. I'm officially changing the title from _Written in the Shadows_ to _Written in the Stars_ , which I like much much more. **

**Final note: I made a tumblr account for this AU! It's called written-in-the-stars-au (how original). I just created it so there's not much to it yet, but follow it for behind-the-scenes stuff, artwork, trivia, and my general rambling! :) Oh, and you can ask me questions there too!**

 **Reviews are better than the new Jonas Brothers single. (Not by much tho, _Sucker_ is awesome)**


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